Low-temperature growth and properties of ZnO nanowires

ZnO nanowires were obtained through evaporation of zinc powders under a low temperature of 400 °C. These ZnO nanowires, in the diameter of ∼10 nm, were long and curved with lengths of tens of micrometers. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy showed these ZnO nanowires were mostly crystalline structure; however, the kink parts contained dislocations and stacking faults. Furthermore, the movement of dislocations was observed in the kink parts under e-beam irradiation. Photoluminescence and Raman spectra show that there exist oxygen vacancies in the ZnO nanowires. Possible reasons for the growth and properties of ZnO nanowires were discussed.