Novel Nanostructures of Functional Oxides Synthesized by Thermal Evaporation

TLDR

Functional oxides are fundamental to smart devices and serve as semiconductors used in nanodevices such as field‑effect transistors and gas sensors. The article reviews novel nanostructures of functional oxides—nanobelts, nanowires, nanosheets, and nanodiskettes—synthesized in the authors’ laboratory, and illustrates additional types using SnO₂ and SnO as examples. The authors discuss the synthesis, growth, phase transformation, and stability of these nanostructures. A generic single‑crystalline, dislocation‑free, atomically flat nanobelt structure was synthesized for ZnO, SnO₂, In₂O₃, Ga₂O₃, CdO, and PbO₂, and these nanobelts are expected to enable important electronic, optical, sensor, and optoelectronic applications.

Abstract

Abstract Functional oxides are the fundamentals of smart devices. This article reviews novel nanostructures of functional oxides, including nanobelts, nanowires, nanosheets, and nanodiskettes, that have been synthesized in the authors’ laboratory. Among the group of ZnO, SnO 2 , In 2 O 3 , Ga 2 O 3 , CdO, and PbO 2 , which belong to different crystallographic systems and structures, a generic nanobelt structure has been synthesized. The nanobelts are single crystalline and dislocation‐free, and their surfaces are atomically flat. The oxides are semiconductors, and have been used for fabrication of nanodevices such as field‐effect transistors and gas sensors. Taking SnO 2 and SnO as examples, other types of novel nanostructures are illustrated. Their growth, phase transformation, and stability are discussed. The nanobelts and related nanostructures are a unique group that is likely to have important applications in electronic, optical, sensor, and optoelectronic nanodevices.