Effect of gamma irradiation on electrical and structural properties of Zn nanowires

The investigations regarding electrical properties of one-dimensional nanostructures for electronic device applications are important. In the present study, Zn nanowires embedded in a polycarbonate track-etch membrane with cylindrical nanopores of diameter 100 nm were synthesized by electrodeposition technique. Synthesized nanowires were exposed to different doses of gamma ray photons, by using a Co-60 source at the Inter University Accelerator Centre, New Delhi, India. The measurements of I-V characteristics (IVC) of pristine and irradiated Zn nanowires revealed a decrease in the conductivity with an increase in dose of gamma rays, which may be due to the enhanced diffusive scattering of electrons from grain boundaries. The texture analysis of pristine and irradiated nanostructures was also carried out in order to find out preferred orientations of crystal planes.