Ultra-long multicolor belts and unique morphologies of tin-doped zinc oxide nanostructures

Abstract

We demonstrate the synthesis, characterization and application of pure and tin (Sn) doped zinc oxide (ZnO) nanostructures with unique optical properties. Pencil-shaped nanorods were synthesized using a mixture of pure ZnO and carbon as starting material. The growth mechanism of these nanorods is discussed in detail. Sn-doped ultra-long belt-shape ZnO structures show many different colors in a single belt under fluorescent light in an optical microscope. These different colors are attributed to the presence of different defects in the ZnO lattice. X-ray diffraction and UV–VIS spectroscopy results are in good agreement with each other. A major application for these belts is likely to be in a single-particle sensor. A single belt based UV sensor is also fabricated and the results suggest that these photoconducting belts can serve as highly sensitive UV-light detectors.