Zinc Oxide Nanostructures Synthesized by Oxidization of Zinc

Abstract

Zinc oxide (ZnO) is a unique material that exhibits semiconducting as well as piezoelectric properties. Oxidation of pure metallic Zn at low temperatures of 400-600oC for 2 h has resulted in a range of nanostructures of ZnO on the surface of metallic Zn. The large variety of nanostructures formed on the surface of Zn clearly demonstrates that ZnO has a very rich family of nanostructures. These nanostructures could have applications in a wide range of areas like optoelectronics, sensors, transducers and biomedical sciences. Here we have reported how the morphology of ZnO formed on Zn surface changes with oxidation temperature. The structure and morphology of ZnO formed by oxidation of high purity metallic Zn at temperatures ranging from 300-1000oC for 2 h were analyzed. Oxidation of metallic Zn at higher temperatures of 700-1000oC for 2 h has resulted in ZnO having a completely different needle like morphology as compared to the nanostructures that could be formed at lower temperatures of 400-600oC. The change in the morphology of ZnO formed on the surface of Zn as it was oxidized at different temperatures was studied using a SEM. Energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy and x-ray diffraction analysis of the ZnO structures were also performed. DSC/TG analysis was also done in order to determine the temperature at which oxidation starts.