Facile Synthesis of Hierarchical ZnO:Tb3+ Nanorod Bundles and Their Optical and Magnetic Properties

Here we explored a facile electrodeposition route to prepare large-area ZnO:Tb 3+ nanorod bundles in a solution of Zn(NO 3 ) 2 + Tb(NO 3 ) 3 + CH 3 COONH 4 at the temperature of 70 °C. The formation process of ZnO:Tb 3+ nanorod bundles was investigated. When the concentration of CH 3 COONH 4 was increased, the density of the nanorod bundles was largely increased, and the number of nanorod in the bundles also increased. The prepared ZnO:Tb 3+ nanorod bundles were characterized by SEM, EDS, TEM, HRTEM, SAED, XRD, and XPS. According to the data of the absorption spectra, the optical band gaps ( E g ) of ZnO:Tb 3+ were estimated to be 3.13 eV. The luminescence of the prepared ZnO:Tb 3+ nanorod bundles indicates these deposits have a high optical property. The magnetic measurements show the magnetic properties of ZnO:Tb 3+ nanorod bundles are obviously affected by the temperature, and the blocking temperature is about 225 K, above which the deposits are superparamagnetic.