Morphology and field emission properties of tetrapod shaped Sn doped ZnO nanostructures under different growth times

Abstract

The morphology, microstructure and field emission (FE) properties of tetrapod shaped Sn doped ZnO (T-SZO) nanostructures grown for different times were investigated. It is found that the morphology, particularly the aspect ratio of the T-SZO, can be controlled by adjusting the growth time and that the aspect ratio affects its FE properties. The aspect ratio increases first with the growth time, and after 90 s, a new series of T-SZO with smaller size and lower aspect ratio appear, leading to the deterioration of the FE properties. The sample grown for 90 s exhibits the highest aspect ratio of 16:5 and the lowest turn on field of 1·82 V μm− 1.