Eur. Phys. J. Plus (2022) 137: 752
https://doi.org/10.1140/epjp/s13360-022-02967-2

Regular Article

Optical, electronic, and structural properties of different nanostructured ZnO morphologies

¹ Department of Physics, Jordan University of Science and Technology, P.O. Box 3030, 22110, Irbid, Jordan
² Leibniz Institut für Analytische Wissenschaften-ISAS-e.V, Bunsen-Kirchhoff-Straße 11, 44139, Dortmund, Germany
³ Hamdi Mango Center for Scientific Research (HMCSR), The Jordan University, 11942, Amman, Jordan

^b alsaad11@just.edu.jo, amalsaad@unomaha.edu

Received: 1 March 2022
Accepted: 16 June 2022
Published online: 30 June 2022

Abstract

Four different ZnO nanostructures, namely nanoparticles, nanorods, nanoribbons, and nanoshuttles, were synthesized by controlling the pH levels, the chemical compositions, and the conditions of the process. Different ZnO nanostructures' structural, wettability, optical, and electrical properties depend on the morphology and particle size. In particular, X-ray diffraction patterns verify that lattice constants, crystallite size, microstrain, and other related structural parameters are affected by the surface morphology and the particle size. In addition, ZnO nanoparticles have hydrophilic nature, while the other nanostructures have hydrophobic nature. For example, the value of the optical bandgap energy for ZnO nanoparticles, ZnO nanorods, ZnO nanoribbons, and ZnO nanoshuttles is 3.30, 3.33, 3.39, and 3.36 eV, respectively, which is in excellent agreement with standard ZnO thin films bandgap energy values. Furthermore, ZnO nanorods have higher electrical conductivity than other nanostructures, while ZnO nanoshuttles have the lowest electrical conductivity. The grain boundaries and the semiconducting nature influence the electrical conductivity of ZnO nanostructures. Finally, the boundaries create various potential barriers to the transportation of electrons in the medium.