Influence of temperature on the morphology and luminescence of ZnO micro and nanostructures prepared by CTAB-assisted hydrothermal method

Hydrothermal approaches from aqueous solution using CTAB as surfactant to fabricate micro and nanostructure of zinc oxide was presented. ZnO micro and nanostructures, synthesized under a certain PH value at various temperature, were characterized by techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscope (TEM). The characterization results indicated that the ZnO micro and nanostructures prepared at the temperature of 120, 150 and 180 °C were crystalline with the hexagonal wurtzite structure and exhibited different morphology, such as flower-like and cabbage-like structures. Photoluminescence (PL) spectra showed that all products had similar emission features. The influence of temperature on PL spectra was mainly embodied in intensity. In addition, the growth mechanisms of these ZnO micro and nanostructures at different temperature by CTAB-assisted hydrothermal growth were preliminarily discussed.