Localized Energy Band Bending in ZnO Nanorods Decorated with Au Nanoparticles

Surface decoration by means of metal nanostructures is an effective way to locally modify the electronic properties of materials. The decoration of ZnO nanorods by means of Au nanoparticles was experimentally investigated and modelled in terms of energy band bending. ZnO nanorods were synthesized by chemical bath deposition. Decoration with Au nanoparticles was achieved by immersion in a colloidal solution obtained through the modified Turkevich method. The surface of ZnO nanorods was quantitatively investigated by Scanning Electron Microscopy, Transmission Electron Microscopy and Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry. The Photoluminescence and Cathodoluminescence of bare and decorated ZnO nanorods were investigated, as well as the band bending through Mott–Schottky electrochemical analyses. Decoration with Au nanoparticles induced a 10 times reduction in free electrons below the surface of ZnO, together with a decrease in UV luminescence and an increase in visible-UV intensity ratio. The effect of decoration was modelled with a nano-Schottky junction at ZnO surface below the Au nanoparticle with a Multiphysics approach. An extensive electric field with a specific halo effect formed beneath the metal–semiconductor interface. ZnO nanorod decoration with Au nanoparticles was shown to be a versatile method to tailor the electronic properties at the semiconductor surface.

Two-dimensional WSe2 flakes under high power optical excitation

Quasi-2D layers of transition metal dichalcogenides are promising candidates for creating saturable absorbers for pulsed lasers. However, the peculiarities of intense electromagnetic radiation’s influence on such structures have not been thoroughly studied. This paper explores the dynamics of photoexcited carriers in WSe2 flakes through experimental studies. These studies found that WSe2 flakes significantly change their optical properties under the influence of a high-power optical pump, allowed estimating the thermalization time of these structures (about 2 ps), and found that full relaxation takes more than 10 ps. The concentration of carriers in the semiconductor surface layer was estimated to be about 1028 m–3. It was found that standard description models of the optical response based on exciton resonances and absorption by free carriers could not adequately describe the experiments’ results. Thus, for an accurate description of the optical response, it was necessary to consider the effects associated with Coulomb screening that are caused by the high concentration of photo-excited carriers of the optical pumping densities used in this experiment.

Features of Melt Droplet Formation during Electrical Destruction Aluminum Films on the Semiconductor Surface

The work is devoted to processes during melting of thin aluminium film on silicon surface in pulse current mode. An experiment was conducted to study the dynamics during the onset of the liquid phase on a metal film. Besides, the process of formation droplet localization zones is considered. The experimental part revealed critical current values ​ during an electrical explosion of thin metal films near the thermal shock source. Using the oscillographic method, the temperature profile of the metallization track is calculated.

Hot Carrier Photocurrent through MOS Structure

Flow of photocurrent through the metal-oxide-semiconductor structure induced by the pulsed infrared CO2 laser is investigated experimentally. In the case of a perfect insulator, the photocurrent has a photocapacitive character. Its rise is based on the hot carrier phenomenon; no carrier generation is present, only redistribution of laser-heated carriers takes place at the semiconductor surface. The magnitude of this displacement current is related to the capacitance of the structure and is dependent on the rate of the laser pulse change as well as on the laser light intensity. This effect can find application in the detection of fast infrared laser pulses as well as in the development of infrared photovaractors. Operation of such devices would not require cryogenic temperatures what is usually needed by the long-wavelength infrared semiconductor technique.

Kinetic-invariant analysis of dye degradation in an annular slurry bubble-column photo reactor

Heterogeneous photocatalysis refers to the series of oxidation and reduction reactions on a semiconductor surface by the electrons and holes generated by absorption of light by the catalyst. This method is widely used for the degradation of dyes and their mixtures present in the textile effluent, and involves two main aspects, viz. a photocatalyst, and a photoreactor. TiO2 nanoparticles are well explored and among the best known photocatalysts used worldwide. Annular slurry bubble-column reactor is a commonly used photoreactor for dye(s) degradation. This research paper explores the effects of different parameters like air-flow rate, photocatalyst loading, and initial dye concentration on the dye degradation in an annular slurry bubble-column photoreactor. The results showed that the best dye degradation efficiencies were reported at an aeration rate of 1.7 × 10−4 m3/s and at a catalyst loading of 1.5 kg/m3. Higher the initial concentration of dye, the greater is the time taken for complete degradation and mineralization. A kinetic-invariant method, which is based on the dimensionless representation of existing data to predict the new experimental results, is used to develop a semi-empirical reactor performance equation. It can be used to predict the concentration of dye undergoing degradation in the photocatalytic reactor at any time without a need for further experimentation.

Kinetic Study of Congo-Red Photo-Catalytic Degradation in Aqueous Media Using Zinc Oxide as Photo Catalyst Under Led Light

The kinetic of photo catalytic degradation of Congo red dye using semiconductor in aqueous solution of ZnO has been studied. All photochemical experiments have been carried out in quartz photo cell 25ml capacity and the solvent used for all experiment was distilled water (D. W). The influence of temperature has been investigated as well. Spectrophotometric method was utilized for this work. Degradation kinetic has been done for absorption peak of Congo red at 497 nm and 344 nm. Different method was applied for this purpose, and the results show that the degradation of Congo red was first order at 497nm and zero order at 344 nm. The degradation of CR dye were increased by increasing temperature from 20 oC to 40 oC and then degreased at 50 oC and this is due to desorption that occur at the semiconductor surface while; in case of 10 oC the rate constant was higher than 20 oC. However, when changing the concentration the rate constant dose not changed regularly, this perhaps due to the fact that it does not follow the same order throughout the degradation process, and it does not obey Arrhenius law of activation energy.

Plasmonic semiconductor nanogroove array enhanced broad spectral band millimetre and terahertz wave detection

High-performance uncooled millimetre and terahertz wave detectors are required as a building block for a wide range of applications. The state-of-the-art technologies, however, are plagued by low sensitivity, narrow spectral bandwidth, and complicated architecture. Here, we report semiconductor surface plasmon enhanced high-performance broadband millimetre and terahertz wave detectors which are based on nanogroove InSb array epitaxially grown on GaAs substrate for room temperature operation. By making a nanogroove array in the grown InSb layer, strong millimetre and terahertz wave surface plasmon polaritons can be generated at the InSb–air interfaces, which results in significant improvement in detecting performance. A noise equivalent power (NEP) of 2.2 × 10−14 W Hz−1/2 or a detectivity (D*) of 2.7 × 1012 cm Hz1/2 W−1 at 1.75 mm (0.171 THz) is achieved at room temperature. By lowering the temperature to the thermoelectric cooling available 200 K, the corresponding NEP and D* of the nanogroove device can be improved to 3.8 × 10−15 W Hz−1/2 and 1.6 × 1013 cm Hz1/2 W−1, respectively. In addition, such a single device can perform broad spectral band detection from 0.9 mm (0.330 THz) to 9.4 mm (0.032 THz). Fast responses of 3.5 µs and 780 ns are achieved at room temperature and 200 K, respectively. Such high-performance millimetre and terahertz wave photodetectors are useful for wide applications such as high capacity communications, walk-through security, biological diagnosis, spectroscopy, and remote sensing. In addition, the integration of plasmonic semiconductor nanostructures paves a way for realizing high performance and multifunctional long-wavelength optoelectrical devices.

Measuring Theoretical Descriptors of Water Oxidation: Free Energy Differences Between Intermediates Using Time-Resolved Optical Spectroscopy

<p>Theoretical descriptions differentiate catalytic activity of material surfaces for the water oxidation reaction by the stability of the reactive oxygen (O*) intermediate. The underlying conjecture is that there are several meta-stable steps of the reaction, each connected by free energy differences critically dependent on O*. Recently <i>in-situ, </i>time-resolved spectroscopy of the (<i>photo<br> </i>)-electrochemical water oxidation reaction identified the vibrational and optical signatures of O* time-evolution. However, there has been little connection between these inherently kinetic experiments and the underlying thermodynamic parameters of the theory. Here, we discover that picosecond optical spectra of the O* population modulated by a shift in reaction equilibria defines an effective equilibrium constant (K_eff) containing the relevant free-energy differences. A Langmuir isotherm as a function of electrolyte pH extracts K_eff using a model titania system (SrTiO₃). The results show how to obtain equilibrium constants of individual reaction steps on material surfaces, which had not been experimentally accessible previously. Further, we find that for a photo-excited reaction on a semiconductor surface tuning past a pH defined by K_eff doubles the initial O* population. That the free energies of the catalytic surface are definable through a time-resolved spectroscopy, alongside the finding that the surface recollects its explicit equilibrium with the electrolyte, provides a new and critical connection between theory and experiment by which to tailor the pathway of water oxidation and other surface reactions.</p>