Influence of plasma power on the size distribution of deposited zinc oxide nanorods

Abstract

Zinc oxide nanopowders were obtained by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) with optical emission spectrometry control at different plasma discharge powers (30, 50, and 70 W). Dimensional and morphological characteristics of the zinc oxide nanoparticles were studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The received SEM data were statistically processed. The zinc nanoparticles had a rod-like shape with different transverse diameters depending on the plasma power. With an increase in the plasma power, the diameter of the zinc oxide rods decreased with a simultaneous narrowing of the variability for their size range. The transverse size of the zinc oxide rods decreased by 2 and more than 15 times with an increase in the plasma discharge power to 50 and 70 W, respectively.