Effect of Pr doping on the structural and optical properties of ZnO nanorods

Influence of Pr doping on the structural, optical properties of ZnO nanorods prepared through an aqueous solution route has been made. The wurtzite crystal structure of the host specimen was studied to be unaltered on Pr substitution into the host lattice, from the X-ray diffraction measurements. The lattice constants for the Pr-doped ZnO nanorods were observed to increase slightly with respect to the Pr composition. The morphology and chemical composition of the nanorods were studied using field emission scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy and inductive coupled plasma (ICP) techniques. The high resolution transmission electron microscopy and selected area electron diffraction pattern revealed the highly crystalline nature of Pr-doped ZnO nanorods. Zn–O bonding studied from the FT-IR spectroscopy has been observed to shift towards the lower wavenumbers on Pr incorporation. The crystallinity of the nanorods has been additionally studied using Raman spectroscopy, with the sharp peak observed at 438 cm−1. A red shift in the NBE emission has been observed at 394 nm on Pr doping, along with a broad visible emission in the luminescence spectra.