Optical studies of nano-structured La-doped ZnO prepared by combustion method

Coral-shaped nano-structured zinc oxide (ZnO) was successfully synthesized and La-doped via a facile combustion process using glycine as a fuel. The auto-ignition (at ∼185 °C) of viscous reactants zinc nitrate and glycine resulted in ZnO powders. Hexagonal wurtzite structure of pure and doped ZnO powder was confirmed by X-ray powder diffraction analysis. The transmission electron micrograph shows that the nano-structured ZnO is coral-shaped and possess maximal pore (∼10–50 nm pore size) density in it and the grain size is approximately about 15 nm. Addition of dopants subsequently alters the structural and optical properties which were confirmed by UV–VIS studies.