Effect of the gas composition on the structural and electrical properties of ZnO nanostructures obtained by oxidation of Zn at atmospheric pressure

Abstract

In this work we report the synthesis of ZnO nanorods on glass substrates by a simple thermal evaporation of high purity Zn powder without the use of any catalyst. The product was obtained at atmospheric pressure by the oxidation of Zn vapour in a flow of Ar and O2 gas mixture at low temperature of glass substrates (390 °C). The morphology, phase composition and crystallinity of the nanostructures were investigated by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction analysis. Their electrical properties were studied via current-voltage (I–V) measurements. XRD demonstrates that the nanorods deposited consist predominantly of the wurtzite phase of ZnO with preferred c-axis orientation. The results show that the oxygen content in the deposition atmosphere influences strongly the morphology and electrical resistance of the produced ZnO nanostructures.