Tunable surface and/or interface ferromagnetism of ZnO nanoparticles

The ZnO-based diluted magnetic semiconductor materials have been widely investigated since the room temperature ferromagnetism (FM) was predicted in the p-type Mn doped ZnO. However, it is now clear that magnetic dopants or impurities are not necessary for introducing FM into ZnO. As confirmed by numerous theoretical and experimental works, tunable FM can be effectively introduced into ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) by controlling the surface and/or interface nanostructures. This review describes the recent advances in the surface and/or interface FM of ZnO NPs without any magnetic impurities. On the basis of the previous reports including our recent works, the origin of FM of ZnO NPs has been overviewed and discussed in terms of defects, complex reactions or compounds, and electron transfer at the NP surface or interface.