Water-based wet chemical synthesis of (doped) ZnO nanostructures

Looking at its vast range of applications, nanostructured ZnO can be considered as a key technological material. Simple and ecological production techniques for this and other nanostructured materials can boost the detection of their unusual properties. In this context water-based wet chemical synthesis routes for nanostructured ZnO are explored in this study. The advantages and disadvantages of controlled double-jet precipitation, microemulsion preparation, hydrothermal synthesis and an aqueous solution-gel route are described for the formation of (doped) ZnO nanoparticles. The influence of the synthesis parameters on the particle size, size distribution and degree of agglomeration of the particles is reported. Thin films are prepared by chemical solution deposition from aqueous solution. The heat treatment profile and the precursor composition are seen to largely control the density, the grain size and the degree of preferential c-axis orientation.