Self-assembly of ZnO nanodots on glass substrates by a facile sol-gel method

Abstract

In this work, we report the self-assembly of ZnO nanodots on the glass substrates by a sol-gel method. Firstly, the precursor solution consisted of zinc acetate and the solvent of ethylene glycol or propylene glycol is employed to fabricate precursor thin film by spin coating. Secondly, the as-grown precursor thin film is annealed at a low temperature to form the self-assembled ZnO nanodots. The effects of solvent type, precursor solution concentration and annealing time on the morphologies of the self-assembled ZnO nanodots were investigated. In addition, the self-assembly evolution of the ZnO nanodots is proposed in order to helping people to understand the formation of the nanodots by mean of sol-gel method.