Control of morphology and luminescense of nanostructured ZnO layers for lasing applications

Abstract

A comparative analysis of various technological methods for the preparation of nanostructured ZnO films is performed in this work to identify technologies suitable for the development of laser structures. It is shown that arrays of nanorods with a regular hexagonal geometry are readily produced by low-pressure chemical vapor deposition (CVD), chemical bath deposition (CBD), and electrochemical depositions (ECD) and these nanorods can play the role of resonators for guided modes. Irregular nanostructured layers with strong light scattering properties can be prepared by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), aerosol spray pyrolysis, and by thermal treatment of ZnSe crystals. As concerns the optical quality necessary for stimulated emission and optical gain, low-pressure CVD and MOCVD are most suitable, while CBD and ECD can hardly provide the required quality for lasing action.