Hydrothermally Synthesis Nanostructure ZnO Thin Film for Photocatalysis Application

Abstract

ZnO has nanostructured material because of unique properties suitable for various applications. Amongst all chemical and physics methods of synthesis of ZnO nanostructure, the hydrothermal method is attractive for its simplicity and environment friendly condition. Nanostructure ZnO thin films have been successfully synthesized on fluorine doped tin oxide (FTO) substrate using hydrothermal method. A possible growth mechanism of the various nanostructures ZnO is discussed in schematics. The prepared materials were characterized by standard analytical techniques, i.e., X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Field-emission scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The XRD study showed that the obtained ZnO nanostructure thin films are in crystalline nature with hexagonal wurtzite phase. The SEM image shows substrate surface covered with nanostructure ZnO nanrod. The UV-vis absorption spectrum of the synthesized nanostructure ZnO shows a strong excitonic absorption band at 365 nm which indicate formation nanostructure ZnO thin film. Photoluminescence spectra illustrated two emission peaks, with the first one at 424 nm due to the band edge emission of ZnO and the second broad peak centered around 500 nm possibly due to oxygen vacancies in nanostructure ZnO. The Raman measurements peaks observed at 325 cm -1 , 418 cm -1 , 518 cm -1 and 584 cm -1 indicated that nanostrusture ZnO thin film is high crystalline quality. We trust that nanostructure ZnO material can be effectively will be used as a highly active and stable phtocatalysis application.