Investigation of morphology evolution of Cu–ZnO nanorod arrays and enhancement of ferromagnetism by codoping with N

•The morphology transition is extremely suppressed for nanorods grown without stir.•Incorporation of N apparently enhanced the ferromagnetism of ZnO:Cu films.•The ferromagnetic behavior is a compensated result in the doped ZnO system.

Cu-doped ZnO nanorod arrays have been synthesized by a facile electrochemical deposition method. It has been found that the morphology transition from conical tops to flat tops is extremely suppressed in unstirred growth environment, so we can get nanorods with conical top much easier. In addition, the effect of nitrogen on the magnetic properties of Cu-doped ZnO has been investigated. It has been found that incorporation of N leads to an apparent enhancement of the ferromagnetism in Cu-doped ZnO films. The ferromagnetic behavior is a compensated result in the doped ZnO system.