Quantitative and simultaneous analysis of the polarity of polycrystalline ZnO seed layers and related nanowires grown by wet chemical deposition.

The polarity in ZnO nanowires is an important issue since it strongly affects surface configuration and reactivity, nucleation and growth, electro-optical properties, and nanoscale-engineering device performances. However, measuring statistically the polarity of ZnO nanowire arrays grown by chemical bath deposition and elucidating its correlation with the polarity of the underneath polycrystalline ZnO seed layer grown by the sol-gel process represents a major difficulty. To address that issue, we combine resonant x-ray diffraction (XRD) at Zn K-edge using synchrotron radiation with piezoelectric force microscopy and polarity-sensitive chemical etching to statistically investigate the polarity of more than 107 nano-objects both on the macroscopic and local microscopic scales, respectively. By using high temperature annealing under an argon atmosphere, it is shown that the compact, highly c-axis oriented ZnO seed layer is more than 92% Zn-polar and that only a few small O-polar ZnO grains with an amount less than 8% are formed. Correlatively, the resulting ZnO nanowires are also found to be Zn-polar, indicating that their polarity is transferred from the c-axis oriented ZnO grains acting as nucleation sites in the seed layer. These findings pave the way for the development of new strategies to form unipolar ZnO nanowire arrays as a requirement for a number of nanoscale-engineering devices like piezoelectric nanogenerators. They also highlight the great advantage of resonant XRD as a macroscopic, non-destructive method to simultaneously and statistically measure the polarity of ZnO nanowire arrays and of the underneath ZnO seed layer.

Investigation of tip-depletion-induced fail in scanning capacitance microscopy for the determination of carrier type.

Scanning capacitance microscopy (SCM) was performed on an n-type Si multilayer structure doped by phosphorus whose concentration ranges from 2×1017 to 2×1019cm-3. Three types of tips were used, i.e. fresh Pt/Ir coated tip, worn Pt/Ir coated tip and non-coated commercial Si tip. The use of fresh Pt/Ir coated tips produces SCM result in good agreement with the doping profile including the correct identification of the carrier type. In contrast, a worn Pt/Ir coated tip which has lost its metal coating and a non-coated tip will fail to recognize successfully the carrier type for phosphorus dopant concentration above 8×1018cm-3 (identifying as p instead of n) due to the tip depletion effect. These results alert us to carefully interpret the SCM results, especially in the case for identification of carrier type inside the sample of interest which is unknown.

Spontaneous shape transition of thin films into ZnO nanowires with high structural and optical quality.

ZnO nanowires are usually formed by physical and chemical deposition techniques following the bottom-up approach consisting in supplying the reactants on a nucleation surface heated at a given temperature. We demonstrate an original alternative approach for the formation of ZnO nanowire arrays with high structural and optical quality, which is based on the spontaneous transformation of a ZnO thin film deposited by sol-gel process following a simple annealing. The development of these ZnO nanowires occurs through successive shape transitions, including the intermediate formation of pyramid-shaped islands. Their nucleation under near-equilibrium conditions is expected to be governed by thermodynamic considerations via the total free energy minimization related to the nanowire shape. It is further strongly assisted by the drastic reordering of the matter and by recrystallization phenomena through the massive transport of zinc and oxygen atoms towards the localized growth areas. The spontaneous shape transition process thus combines the easiness and low-cost of sol-gel process and simple annealing with the assets of the vapor phase deposition techniques. These findings cast a light on the fundamental mechanisms driving the spontaneous formation of ZnO nanowires and, importantly, reveal the great technological potential of the spontaneous shape transition process as a promising alternative approach to the more usual bottom-up approach.

Luminescence nanothermometry with alkyl-capped silicon nanoparticles dispersed in nonpolar liquids.

Silicon nanoparticles (Si NPs) with a diameter size ranging from 4 to 8 nm were successfully fabricated. They exhibit a visible photoluminescence (PL) due to the quantum confinement effect. Chemical functionalization of these Si NPs with alkyl groups allowed to homogeneously disperse them in nonpolar liquids (NPLs). In comparison to most of literature results for Si NPs, an important PL peak position variation with temperature (almost 1 meV/K) was obtained from 303 to 390 K. The influence of the liquid viscosity on the peak positions is also presented. These variations are discussed considering energy transfer between nanoparticles. The high PL thermal sensitivity of the alkyl-capped Si NPs paves the way for their future application as nanothermometers.

Luminescence behavior of silicon and carbon nanoparticles dispersed in low-polar liquids.

A comparative photoluminescence analysis of as-prepared and chemically modified (by alkyl chains -C18H37) silicon and carbon nanoparticles dispersed in low-polar liquids is reported. Influence of the low-polar liquid nature and ambient temperature on photoluminescence of the nanoparticles has been investigated from the point of view of their possible application as thermal nanoprobes.

Stability of hydrogen incorporated in ZnO nanowires by plasma treatment.

The stability of hydrogen in ZnO is studied using hydrogenated nanowires by plasma treatment. Enhanced near band edge UV emission and reduced defect level green emission is observed after hydrogen plasma treatment. Through thermal stability tests, this effect is found to be stable at room temperature and nearly stable up to ~500 K, but begins to deteriorate at higher temperature. The study of the irradiation stability of the hydrogen in ZnO nanowires shows that the hydrogen is stable under an electron beam with an accelerating voltage lower than 5 kV, but is not stable under 10 kV or under an intensive laser beam. The results could benefit the further understanding of the role of hydrogen in ZnO and light-emitting devices based on hydrogenated ZnO.

Memory properties and charge effect study in Si nanocrystals by scanning capacitance microscopy and spectroscopy.

In this letter, isolated Si nanocrystal has been formed by dewetting process with a thin silicon dioxide layer on top. Scanning capacitance microscopy and spectroscopy were used to study the memory properties and charge effect in the Si nanocrystal in ambient temperature. The retention time of trapped charges injected by different direct current (DC) bias were evaluated and compared. By ramp process, strong hysteresis window was observed. The DC spectra curve shift direction and distance was observed differently for quantitative measurements. Holes or electrons can be separately injected into these Si-ncs and the capacitance changes caused by these trapped charges can be easily detected by scanning capacitance microscopy/spectroscopy at the nanometer scale. This study is very useful for nanocrystal charge trap memory application.