Ten years’ venturing in ZnO nanostructures: from discovery to scientific understanding and to technology applications

Zinc oxide is a unique material that exhibits semiconducting, piezoelectric and pyroelectric multiple properties. Nanostructures of ZnO are equally important as carbon nanotubes and silicon nanowires (NWs) for nanotechnology, and have great potential applications in nano-electronics, optoelectronics, sensors, field emission, light emitting diodes, photocatalysis, nanogenerators, and nanopiezotronics. Ever since the discovery of nanobelts (NBs) in 2001 by my group, a world wide research in ZnO has been kicked off. This review introduces my group’s experience in venturing the discovery, understanding and applications of ZnO NWs and NBs. The aim is to introduce the progress made in my research in the last 10 years in accompany to the huge social advances and economic development taking place in China in the last 10 years.

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[2]  Wenjie Mai,et al.  Patterned growth of vertically aligned ZnO nanowire arrays on inorganic substrates at low temperature without catalyst. , 2008, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[3]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Piezoelectric nanogenerator using p-type ZnO nanowire arrays. , 2009, Nano letters.

[4]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Gigantic enhancement in response and reset time of ZnO UV nanosensor by utilizing Schottky contact and surface functionalization. , 2009, Applied physics letters.

[5]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Direct-Current Nanogenerator Driven by Ultrasonic Waves , 2007, Science.

[6]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Piezoelectric Nanogenerators Based on Zinc Oxide Nanowire Arrays , 2006, Science.

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[8]  Zhong-Lin Wang.  Towards Self‐Powered Nanosystems: From Nanogenerators to Nanopiezotronics , 2008 .

[9]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Microfibre–nanowire hybrid structure for energy scavenging , 2009, Nature.

[10]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Nanobelts of Semiconducting Oxides , 2001, Science.

[11]  Zhong Lin Wang.  The new field of nanopiezotronics , 2007 .

[12]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Large-Scale Hexagonal-Patterned Growth of Aligned ZnO Nanorods for Nano-optoelectronics and Nanosensor Arrays. , 2004, Nano letters.

[13]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Deformation-Free Single-Crystal Nanohelixes of Polar Nanowires , 2004 .

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[15]  Charles M. Lieber,et al.  A laser ablation method for the synthesis of crystalline semiconductor nanowires , 1998, Science.

[16]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Microfibre–nanowire hybrid structure for energy scavenging , 2008, Nature.

[17]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Piezoelectric Characterization of Individual Zinc Oxide Nanobelt Probed by Piezoresponse Force Microscope , 2004 .

[18]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Piezoelectric gated diode of a single zno nanowire , 2007 .

[19]  Yulin Deng,et al.  Giant enhancement in UV response of ZnO nanobelts by polymer surface-functionalization. , 2007, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[20]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Power generation with laterally packaged piezoelectric fine wires. , 2009, Nature nanotechnology.

[21]  Guang Zhu,et al.  Converting biomechanical energy into electricity by a muscle-movement-driven nanogenerator. , 2009, Nano letters.

[22]  Liming Dai,et al.  Characteristics of output voltage and current of integrated nanogenerators , 2009 .

[23]  Eicke R. Weber,et al.  Room-Temperature Ultraviolet Nanowire Nanolasers. , 2001 .

[24]  Ningsheng Xu,et al.  Dissolving Behavior and Stability of ZnO Wires in Biofluids: A Study on Biodegradability and Biocompatibility of ZnO Nanostructures , 2006 .

[25]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Electrostatic potential in a bent piezoelectric nanowire. The fundamental theory of nanogenerator and nanopiezotronics. , 2007, Nano letters.

[26]  W. D. de Heer,et al.  Nanomechanics of individual carbon nanotubes from pyrolytically grown arrays. , 2000, Physical review letters.

[27]  Elisa Riedo,et al.  Elastic property of vertically aligned nanowires. , 2005, Nano letters.

[28]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Formation of piezoelectric single-crystal nanorings and nanobows. , 2004, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[29]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Piezoelectric field effect transistor and nanoforce sensor based on a single ZnO nanowire. , 2006, Nano letters.

[30]  Yong Ding,et al.  Single-Crystal Nanorings Formed by Epitaxial Self-Coiling of Polar Nanobelts , 2004, Science.

[31]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Electronic transport in superlattice-structured ZnO Nanohelix. , 2009, Nano letters.

[32]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Self-powered nanotech. , 2008, Scientific American.

[33]  Chen Xu,et al.  Nanowire structured hybrid cell for concurrently scavenging solar and mechanical energies. , 2009, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[34]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Piezoelectric and semiconducting coupled power generating process of a single ZnO belt/wire. A technology for harvesting electricity from the environment. , 2006, Nano letters.

[35]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Patterned growth of horizontal ZnO nanowire arrays. , 2009, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[36]  Yifan Gao,et al.  Mechanical-electrical triggers and sensors using piezoelectric micowires/nanowires. , 2008, Nano letters.

[37]  W. D. Heer,et al.  Electrostatic deflections and electromechanical resonances of carbon nanotubes , 1999, Science.

[38]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Flexible piezotronic strain sensor. , 2008, Nano letters.

[39]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Equilibrium potential of free charge carriers in a bent piezoelectric semiconductive nanowire. , 2009, Nano letters.

[40]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Spontaneous Polarization-Induced Nanohelixes, Nanosprings, and Nanorings of Piezoelectric Nanobelts , 2003 .

[41]  Kenji Uchino,et al.  Functional and Smart Materials: Structural Evolution and Structure Analysis, by Zhong Lin Wang and Zhen Chuan Kang , 1998 .

[42]  Yong Ding,et al.  Conversion of Zinc Oxide Nanobelts into Superlattice-Structured Nanohelices. , 2005 .

[43]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Cellular level biocompatibility and biosafety of ZnO nanowires , 2008 .

[44]  Wenjie Mai,et al.  Superelasticity and nanofracture mechanics of ZnO nanohelices. , 2006, Nano letters.