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Self-Assembled Formation of Well-Aligned Cu-Te Nano-Rods on Heavily Cu-Doped ZnTe Thin Films.

ABSTRACT: Cu doping of ZnTe, which is an important semiconductor for various optoelectronic applications, has been successfully achieved previously by several techniques. However, besides its electrical transport characteristics, other physical and chemical properties of heavily Cu-doped ZnTe have not been reported. We found an interesting self-assembled formation of crystalline well-aligned Cu-Te nano-rods near the surface of heavily Cu-doped ZnTe thin films grown via the molecular beam epitaxy technique. A phenomenological growth model is presented based on the observed crystallographic morphology and measured chemical composition of the nano-rods using various imaging and chemical analysis techniques. When substitutional doping reaches its limit, the extra Cu atoms favor an up-migration toward the surface, leading to a one-dimensional surface modulation and formation of Cu-Te nano-rods, which explain unusual observations on the reflection high energy electron diffraction patterns and apparent resistivity of these thin films. This study provides an insight into some unexpected chemical reactions involved in the heavily Cu-doped ZnTe thin films, which may be applied to other material systems that contain a dopant having strong reactivity with the host matrix.

SUBMITTER: Liang J

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5126038 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Self-Assembled Formation of Well-Aligned Cu-Te Nano-Rods on Heavily Cu-Doped ZnTe Thin Films.

Liang Jing J Cheng Man Kit MK Lai Ying Hoi YH Wei Guanglu G Yang Sean Derman SD Wang Gan G Ho Sut Kam SK Tam Kam Weng KW Sou Iam Keong IK

Nanoscale research letters 20161129 1

Cu doping of ZnTe, which is an important semiconductor for various optoelectronic applications, has been successfully achieved previously by several techniques. However, besides its electrical transport characteristics, other physical and chemical properties of heavily Cu-doped ZnTe have not been reported. We found an interesting self-assembled formation of crystalline well-aligned Cu-Te nano-rods near the surface of heavily Cu-doped ZnTe thin films grown via the molecular beam epitaxy technique ...[more]

PMID: 27896793

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Project description:The efficient electrocatalysts for direct methanol oxidation play an essential role in the electrochemical energy conversion systems for their application in a wide range of portable applications. Consequently, Cu-doped NiO thin films on fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) were successfully prepared by the co-sputtering deposition technique, using various deposition times (300, 600, 900, and 1200 seconds), and producing films of different thicknesses (30, 55, 90, and 120 nm, respectively). X-ray diffraction (XRD) revealed the ideal crystallinity of the structure of the prepared films and was used to observe the effect of the thickness of the films on the crystal size. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) confirmed the purity of the deposited film without any contamination. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) images confirmed the film thickness increase with increasing deposition time. The surface roughness value of the Cu-NiO 1200 film was found to be 3.2 nm based on the atomic force microscopy (AFM) measurements. The deposited thin films of different thicknesses have been used as electrocatalysts for methanol oxidation at various concentrations of methanol (0, 0.5, 1, and 2 M), and displayed the highest electrocatalytic performance in 1 M methanol. Cu-doped NiO thin films have the advantage as electrocatalysts where they can be used directly without adding any binder or conducting agents, this is because Cu-doped NiO is deposited with high adhesion and strong electrical contact to the FTO substrate. A clear impact on the catalytic activity with increasing film thickness and a correlation between the film thickness and its catalytic activity was observed. The current density increased by about 60% for the Cu-NiO 1200 sample compared to Cu-NiO 300 sample, with the lowest onset potential of 0.4 V vs. Ag/AgCl. All deposited thin films of different thicknesses exhibited high stability at 0.6 V in 1 M methanol. This will open the window toward using physical deposition techniques for optimizing the electrocatalytic activity of different catalysts for electrocatalytic applications.

Dataset Information

Self-Assembled Formation of Well-Aligned Cu-Te Nano-Rods on Heavily Cu-Doped ZnTe Thin Films.

Publications

Self-Assembled Formation of Well-Aligned Cu-Te Nano-Rods on Heavily Cu-Doped ZnTe Thin Films.

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