Photodetection and piezoelectric response from hard and flexible sponge-like ZnO-based structures

Abstract In this work a comprehensive characterization of sponge-like nanostructured zinc oxide films is proposed, with a marked attention to the exhibited sensing properties. Sponge-like zinc oxide films were grown on different kinds of hard and flexible substrates, by a two-step process involving a room temperature sputtering deposition of metallic sponge-like zinc films, followed by a low-temperature oxidation treatment. This method allowed growing films with thickness of a few micrometers. The material presented a polycrystalline porous structure with randomly oriented grains. After the formation of top electrodes, the sensing properties of the samples were assessed. In particular, the films exhibited UV sensing capability, with photocurrents up to four orders of magnitude higher than the current values measured in dark conditions. The material also showed considerable piezoelectric response: the mechanical stimulus exerted by the impact of a water drop delivered on its surface generated intense piezoelectric output voltage peaks, thus proving material sensing capability. A maximum average output power density of 2.4 nW/cm2 was calculated. Such interesting properties make sponge-like ZnO a promising smart material for sensing and energy harvesting applications.

[1]  Sangsig Kim,et al.  Fabrication and characterization of Ga-doped ZnO nanowire gas sensor for the detection of CO , 2009 .

[2]  W. Spicer,et al.  Photoemission studies of wurtzite zinc oxide. , 1972 .

[3]  Tae Jae Lee,et al.  Field emission from well-aligned zinc oxide nanowires grown at low temperature , 2002 .

[4]  Ziqiang Zhu,et al.  Growth and optical applications of centimeter-long ZnO nanocombs , 2008 .

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

[6]  M. Jeong,et al.  Catalyst-free growth of ZnO nanowires by metal-organic chemical vapour deposition (MOCVD) and thermal evaporation , 2004 .

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

[8]  J. Elias,et al.  Ordered networks of ZnO-nanowire hierarchical urchin-like structures for improved dye-sensitized solar cells. , 2012, Physical chemistry chemical physics : PCCP.

[9]  Pedro Barquinha,et al.  Zinc oxide, a multifunctional material: from material to device applications , 2009 .

[10]  A. Jankowski,et al.  Sputter deposition of a spongelike morphology in metal coatings , 2003 .

[11]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  One-dimensional ZnO nanostructures: Solution growth and functional properties , 2011 .

[12]  Weitao Yang,et al.  Sulfur-doped zinc oxide (ZnO) Nanostars: Synthesis and simulation of growth mechanism , 2011, Nano Research.

[13]  H. Kashani.  Structural, electrical and optical properties of zinc oxide produced by oxidation of zinc thin films , 1998 .

[14]  T. A. Venkatesh,et al.  Electromechanical response of (3-0) porous piezoelectric materials: Effects of porosity shape , 2011 .

[15]  S. Bianco,et al.  Coral‐shaped ZnO nanostructures for dye‐sensitized solar cell photoanodes , 2014 .

[16]  A. Miyamura,et al.  Comparative study on early stages of film growth for transparent conductive oxide films deposited by dc magnetron sputtering , 2008 .

[17]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Equilibrium piezoelectric potential distribution in a deformed ZnO nanowire , 2009 .

[18]  Zhong‐Lin Wang,et al.  Progress in Piezotronics and Piezo‐Phototronics , 2012, Advanced materials.

[19]  Zhong Lin Wang.  Zinc oxide nanostructures: growth, properties and applications , 2004 .

[20]  Ion Tiginyanu,et al.  Well-aligned arrays of vertically oriented ZnO nanowires electrodeposited on ITO-coated glass and their integration in dye sensitized solar cells , 2010 .

[21]  Chenglu Lin,et al.  Fabrication and ethanol sensing characteristics of ZnO nanowire gas sensors , 2004 .

[22]  J. Thornton.  High Rate Thick Film Growth , 1977 .

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

[24]  S. Chua,et al.  Properties of polycrystalline ZnO thin films by metal organic chemical vapor deposition , 2005 .

[25]  S. Bianco,et al.  An easy method for the room-temperature growth of spongelike nanostructured Zn films as initial step for the fabrication of nanostructured ZnO , 2012 .

[26]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Reshaping the tips of ZnO nanowires by pulsed laser irradiation , 2012, Nano Research.

[27]  C. Soci,et al.  ZnO nanowire UV photodetectors with high internal gain. , 2007, Nano letters.

[28]  Soo‐Hwan Jeong,et al.  Selective-area growth of ZnO nanorod arrays via a sonochemical route , 2008 .

[29]  S. Zaman,et al.  Effect of the polymer emission on the electroluminescence characteristics of n-ZnO nanorods/p-polymer hybrid light emitting diode , 2011 .

[30]  H. Morkoç,et al.  A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF ZNO MATERIALS AND DEVICES , 2005 .

[31]  D. Fan,et al.  Control growth of catalyst-free high-quality ZnO nanowire arrays on transparent quartz glass substrate by chemical vapor deposition , 2011 .

[32]  C. Bowen,et al.  Processing and properties of porous piezoelectric materials with high hydrostatic figures of merit , 2004 .

[33]  J. Myoung,et al.  Fabrication of ZnO nanostructures of various dimensions using patterned substrates , 2009 .

[34]  High efficiency dye-sensitized solar cells exploiting sponge-like ZnO nanostructures. , 2012, Physical chemistry chemical physics : PCCP.

[35]  Jonathan J. Bernstein,et al.  Dielectric, ferroelectric, and piezoelectric properties of lead zirconate titanate thick films on silicon substrates , 1995 .

[36]  Bin Wang,et al.  Facile synthesis of ZnO nanocrystals via a solid state reaction for high performance plastic dye-sensitized solar cells , 2011, Nano Research.

[37]  Won Il Park,et al.  Vertically aligned ZnO nanorods and graphene hybrid architectures for high-sensitive flexible gas sensors , 2011 .

[38]  Peidong Yang,et al.  Vertical nanowire array-based light emitting diodes , 2008 .

[39]  J. Cui.  Zinc oxide nanowires , 2012 .

[40]  J. Musil,et al.  Effect of ion bombardment on the surface morphology of Zn-films sputtered in an unbalanced magnetron , 1995 .

[41]  Lin Li,et al.  Growth of hierarchical based ZnO micro/nanostructured films and their tunable wettability behavior , 2011 .

[42]  Arye Nehorai.  A minimal parameter adaptive notch filter with constrained poles and zeros , 1985, IEEE Trans. Acoust. Speech Signal Process..