Synthesis and photoluminescence of quasi-arrayed ZnMgO nanorods

Abstract

Quasi-arrayed ZnMgO single-crystal nanorods with different Mg concentrations have been fabricated by thermal evaporation of Zn and Mg on a Si substrate using Au as a catalyst. The synthesized ZnMgO nanorods had uniform flat hexagonal crystallorgraphic planes with diameters of about 300 nm. It was found that with the increase in the dopant concentration, the peak position of (0 0 2) was shifted towards the high-angle side (from 34.40° to 34. 54°) and the near-band-edge emission was blue-shifted to 364 nm (3.41 eV) from 385 nm (3.22 eV) in comparison with that of pure ZnO. The direct modulation of the band-gap caused by Mg substitution was responsible for the blue shift. The possible growth mechanism of the ZnMgO nanorods was discussed.