Facile fabrication of hierarchical ZnO nanowire aggregates using rose-like peroxide precursor as the inorganic template

Abstract

The complex rose-like inorganic templates assembled by the ZnO/ZnO₂ hybrid nanosheets have been constructed with hydrogen peroxide as an additive to control the structure of a precursor. The surface morphologies of the inorganic templates can be controlled by varying the reaction time and the amount of hydrogen peroxide. The process of the precursor growth takes a dissolution-growth route under hydrothermal conditions. The chemical composition of the precursor is determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Raman analyses, indicating the existence of peroxide in the precursor. Combined with transmission electron microscopy (TEM) data, the ZnO/ZnO₂ hybrid precursor is proposed to act as an inorganic template for the growth of secondary crystal structures. The dandelion-like ZnO crystal is fabricated by using rose-like peroxide precursor as the inorganic template. The structural evolution of hierarchical ZnO crystal is studied by monitoring the influence of the reaction time.