Surface plasmon enhanced band edge luminescence of ZnO nanorods by capping Au nanoparticles

Abstract

The author observe sixfold enhancement in the near band gap emission of ZnO nanorods by employing surface plasmon of Au nanoparticles, while the defect-related emission is completely suppressed. Time-resolved photoluminescence indicates that the decay process becomes much faster by Au capping. The remarkable enhancement of the ultraviolet emission intensities and transition rates is ascribed to the charge transfer and efficient coupling between ZnO nanorods and Au surface plasmons. The suppression of the green emission might be due to a combined effect of Au surface plasmon and passivation of the ZnO nanorod surface traps.