ZnO nanoparticles prepared by an electroexploding wire technique

Abstract

Abstract Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles have been successfully prepared by an electroexploding wire (EEW) technique from pure zinc (Zn). The system comprises of a wire‐plate and a series of 12 V batteries. The formation of ZnO and nature of the crystallinity have been studied using X‐ray diffraction (XRD) and Raman analyses. The polycrystalline nature of the prepared nanoparticles is confirmed from the XRD studies. The time‐dependent UV–Visible absorption and photoluminescence (PL) studies confirm the evolution of ZnO nanoparticles from Zn obtained by the EEW technique. The sizes of the as‐prepared and annealed nanoparticles as estimated using the effective mass theory from the UV–Visible absorption are 8.9 and 22.0 nm, respectively. These are in agreement with those obtained from TEM micrographs. A broad and intense PL emission centered about 508 nm that is in the green region is observed. It is characteristic of the presence of defect energy states due to oxygen deficiency. From the energy‐dependent analysis of the PL emission, the green emission observed is concluded to be due to the bulk contribution rather than surface defects.