BackgroundWettability is an important property of solid materials which can be controlled by surface energy. Dynamic control over the surface wettability is of great importance for biosensing applications. Zinc oxide (ZnO) is a biocompatible material suitable for biosensors and microfluidic devices. Nanowires of ZnO tend to show a hydrophobic nature which decelerates the adhesion or adsorption of biomolecules on the surface and, therefore, limits their application.MethodsSurface wettability of the ZnO nanowires can be tuned using light irradiation. However, the control over wettability using light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and the role of wavelength in controlling the wettability of ZnO nanowires are unclear. This is the first report on LED-based wettability control of nanowires, and it includes investigations on tuning the desired wettability of ZnO nanowires using LEDs as a controlling tool.ResultsThe investigations on spectral properties of the LED emission on ZnO nanowires’ wettability have shown strong dependency on the spectral overlap of LED emission on ZnO absorption spectra. Results indicate that LEDs offer an advanced control on dynamically tuning the wettability of ZnO nanowires.ConclusionThe spectral investigations have provided significant insight into the role of irradiating wavelength of light and irradiation time on the surface wettability of ZnO nanowires. This process is suitable to realize on chip based integrated sensors and has huge potential for eco-friendly biosensing and environmental sensing applications.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

BackgroundZinc oxide (ZnO) is a wide, direct band gap II-VI oxide semiconductor. ZnO has large exciton binding energy at room temperature, and it is a good host material for obtaining visible and infrared emission of various rare-earth ions.MethodsEuropium oxide (Eu2O3) doped ZnO films are prepared on quartz substrate using radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering with doping concentrations 0, 0.5, 1, 3 and 5 wt%. The films are annealed in air at a temperature of 773 K for 2 hours. The annealed films are characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), micro-Raman spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, ultraviolet (UV)-visible spectroscopy and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy.ResultsXRD patterns show that the films are highly c-axis oriented exhibiting hexagonalwurtzite structure of ZnO. Particle size calculations using Debye-Scherrer formula show that average crystalline size is in the range 15–22 nm showing the nanostructured nature of the films. The observation of low- and high-frequency E2 modes in the Raman spectra supports the hexagonal wurtzite structure of ZnO in the films. The surface morphology of the Eu2O3 doped films presents dense distribution of grains. The films show good transparency in the visible region. The band gaps of the films are evaluated using Tauc plot model. Optical constants such as refractive index, dielectric constant, loss factor, and so on are calculated using the transmittance data. The PL spectra show both UV and visible emissions.ConclusionHighly textured, transparent, luminescent Eu2O3 doped ZnO films have been synthesized using RF magnetron sputtering. The good optical and structural properties and intense luminescence in the ultraviolet and visible regions from the films suggest their suitability for optoelectronic applications.