Bulk-quantity synthesis and photoluminescence properties of chain-like GeO2/ZnGeO3 crystal structures

Bulk-quantity of uniform chain-like GeO2/ZnGeO3 structures has been achieved by a thermal evaporation of a Ge and Zn mixture. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis indicates the product is mainly composed of GeO2 mixed with a small proportion of ZnGeO3. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) characterizations show that the structures consist of particle chains with an almost uniform distance between each particle. The chain-like structures consist of two parts: the ellipsoidal part and the linear part. Energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) reveals that different parts of the structure have different compositions. Spheroidization of Zn/Ge droplets seems to be the main growth mechanism of these structures. Room-temperature photoluminescence (PL) measurement shows that the synthesized structures have a strong emission band at a wavelength of 488.5 nm.