Growth and characterization of ZnO nanonail

Zinc oxide (ZnO) is an interesting material for short-wavelength optoelectronics due to its wide band gap. The nanostructures of ZnO are also intriguing since a variety of morphology can be obtained by employing different processing parameters. In our laboratory, ZnO nanonails were successfully synthesized at low temperature using a thermal chemical vapor deposition. The morphology of the sample was studied by using scanning electron microscopy. The shape of the nail head can be controlled from hexagon to quasi-circular shape. X-ray diffraction, Raman scattering, photoluminescence spectroscopy were also performed to analyze the ZnO nanonail. Photoluminescence spectroscopy suggested that the defects in the ZnO nanonail and nanobone are of different nature.