The Morphology and Optical Properties of ZnO Nanorods Grown on MoS2 Thin Films at Various Thicknesses Using a Chemical Bath Deposition Method

MoS2 thin films and ZnO nanorods were prepared by chemical bath deposition on glass substrates to form ZnO nanorod/MoS2 thin film heterostructures. The morphological, structural and optical properties of ZnO nanorods grown on MoS2 thin films were investigated through scanning electron microscopy (SEM), x-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, ultraviolet–visible (UV–Vis) and photoluminescence spectroscopy, respectively. The SEM images and XRD patterns revealed that ZnO nanorods exhibited a hexagonal wurtzite structure with preferred c-axis orientation, a good crystallinity and covered the entire surface of MoS2 thin films. Furthermore, ZnO nanorods were successfully grown on MoS2 thin films without affecting the crystal structure of 2H-MoS2 which was demonstrated through two typical peaks of 380 cm−1 and 410 cm−1 in Raman spectra. Notably, the combination of ZnO nanorods and MoS2 thin films (ZnO nanorod/MoS2 thin film heterostructures) revealed a significant increase of absorption in the wavelength range of 350–800 nm characterized by UV–Vis spectroscopy. In addition, ZnO nanorod/MoS2 thin film heterostructures also showed a significant decrease of the intensity of photoluminescence emission.