Self-assembly ZnO nanorods by pulsed laser deposition under argon atmosphere

Self-assembly ZnO nanorods have been obtained by pulsed laser deposition under argon atmosphere. However, when the growth has been performed under oxygen atmosphere, ZnO nanorods have not been observed. The effect of the background atmosphere has been discussed in terms of gas atomic size and suboxide-assited process. It seems that the main factors to obtain ZnO nanorod are the formation of nucleation and supersaturation, which has to occur at the same process. Thus, it is possible to control the diameter of nanorod by controlling the dimension of 3D nucleation through adjusting growth parameters such as laser power.