Photoluminescence Study of the Influence of Additive Ammonium Hydroxide in Hydrothermally Grown ZnO Nanowires

We report the influence of ammonium hydroxide (NH(4)OH), as growth additive, on zinc oxide nanomaterial through the optical response obtained by photoluminescence (PL). A low-temperature hydrothermal process is employed for the growth of ZnO nanowires (NWs) on seedless Au surface. A more than two order of magnitude change in ZnO NW density is demonstrated via careful addition of NH(4)OH in the growth solution. Further, we show by systematic experimental study and PL characterization data that the addition of NH(4)OH can degrade the optical response of ZnO NWs produced. The increase of growth solution basicity with the addition of NH(4)OH may slowly degrade the optical response of NWs by slowly etching its surfaces, increasing the point defects in ZnO NWs. The present study demonstrates the importance of growth nutrients to obtain quality controlled density tunable ZnO NWs on seedless conducting substrates. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1186/s11671-018-2665-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.