ZnO nanowire array growth on precisely controlled patterns of inkjet-printed zinc acetate at low-temperatures

Abstract

ZnO nanowires have been fabricated through the hydrothermal method on inkjet-printed patterns of zinc acetate dihydrate. The silicon substrate used was heated accordingly during the printing period in order to maintain good spatial uniformity of the zinc acetate nanoparticles, responsible for the pattern morphology. Printing more than one pass of precursor ink leads to an increase in seed layer thickness that subsequently alters the density and dimensions of nanowires. It has been demonstrated that with the right inkjet-printing parameters and substrate temperature, ZnO nanowires can be effortlessly fabricated in accordance with the desired pattern variations under low temperature and mild conditions that ensures promising applications in optoelectronic devices.