The transfer of charge carriers photogenerated in ZnO nanoparticles into a single ZnO nanowire

Abstract

The transfer of charge carriers, photogenerated in nanoparticles (NPs), into a single nanowire (NW) is demonstrated in this study by conducting a careful comparison of the optoelectronic characteristics of a ZnO NW with ZnO NPs attached to its surface, a bare ZnO NW and a film of close-packed ZnO NPs. Under the illumination of an above-gap light, the photocurrent taken from the NW with the NPs is remarkably higher in magnitude than that obtained from the bare NW, although the photocurrent is substantially lower for the close-packed NPs. The presence of the absorption band of the NPs in the photoresponse spectrum taken from the NW with the NPs reveals that the transfer of the charge carriers photogenerated in the NPs into the NW dramatically enhances the magnitude of the photocurrent flowing in this NW. Nevertheless, during the transfer, the charge carriers experience trapping and detrapping at the interfaces of the NPs and the NW.