ASU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
This collection includes most of the ASU Theses and Dissertations from 2011 to present. ASU Theses and Dissertations are available in downloadable PDF format; however, a small percentage of items are under embargo. Information about the dissertations/theses includes degree information, committee members, an abstract, supporting data or media.
In addition to the electronic theses found in the ASU Digital Repository, ASU Theses and Dissertations can be found in the ASU Library Catalog.
Dissertations and Theses granted by Arizona State University are archived and made available through a joint effort of the ASU Graduate College and the ASU Libraries. For more information or questions about this collection contact or visit the Digital Repository ETD Library Guide or contact the ASU Graduate College at gradformat@asu.edu.
Filtering by
- All Subjects: Nanostructures
- Creators: Yu, Hongbin
bandgap of 2.26 eV that is used in many applications in optoelectronic devices. Compared
to the two dimensional (2D) thin-film semiconductors, one-dimensional (1D)
nanowires can have different electronic properties for potential novel applications.
In this work, we present the study of ZnTe nanowires (NWs) that are synthesized
through a simple vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) method. By controlling the presence or
the absence of Au catalysts and controlling the growth parameters such as growth
temperature, various growth morphologies of ZnTe, such as thin films and nanowires
can be obtained. The characterization of the ZnTe nanostructures and films was
performed using scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy
(EDX), high- resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM), X-ray
diffraction (XRD), photoluminescence (PL), Raman spectroscopy and light scattering
measurement. After confirming the crystal purity of ZnTe, two-terminal diodes and
three-terminal transistors were fabricated with both nanowire and planar nano-sheet
configurations, in order to correlate the nanostructure geometry to device performance
including field effect mobility, Schottky barrier characteristics, and turn-on
characteristics. Additionally, optoelectronic properties such as photoconductive gain
and responsivity were compared against morphology. Finally, ZnTe was explored in
conjunction with ZnO in order to form type-II band alignment in a core-shell nanostructure.
Various characterization techniques including scanning electron microscopy,
energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy , x-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, UV-vis
reflectance spectra and photoluminescence were used to investigate the modification
of ZnO/ZnTe core/shell structure properties. In PL spectra, the eliminated PL intensity
of ZnO wires is primarily attributed to the efficient charge transfer process
occurring between ZnO and ZnTe, due to the band alignment in the core/shell structure. Moreover, the result of UV-vis reflectance spectra corresponds to the band
gap energy of ZnO and ZnTe, respectively, which confirm that the sample consists of
ZnO/ZnTe core/shell structure of good quality.
In the first part of my research, I selected chalcogenides (such as CdS and CdSe) for a comprehensive study in growing two-segment axial nanowires and radial nanobelts/sheets using the ternary CdSxSe1-x alloys. I demonstrated simultaneous red (from CdSe-rich) and green (from CdS-rich) light emission from a single monolithic heterostructure with a maximum wavelength separation of 160 nm. I also demonstrated the first simultaneous two-color lasing from a single nanosheet heterostructure with a wavelength separation of 91 nm under sufficiently strong pumping power.
In the second part, I considered several combinations of source materials with different growth methods in order to extend the spectral coverage of previously demonstrated structures towards shorter wavelengths to achieve full-color emissions. I achieved this with the growth of multisegment heterostructure nanosheets (MSHNs), using ZnS and CdSe chalcogenides, via our novel growth method. By utilizing this method, I demonstrated the first growth of ZnCdSSe MSHNs with an overall lattice mismatch of 6.6%, emitting red, green and blue light simultaneously, in a single furnace run using a simple CVD system. The key to this growth method is the dual ion exchange process which converts nanosheets rich in CdSe to nanosheets rich in ZnS, demonstrated for the first time in this work. Tri-chromatic white light emission with different correlated color temperature values was achieved under different growth conditions. We demonstrated multicolor (191 nm total wavelength separation) laser from a single monolithic semiconductor nanostructure for the first time. Due to the difficulties associated with growing semiconductor materials of differing composition on a given substrate using traditional planar epitaxial technology, our nanostructures and growth method are very promising for various device applications, including but not limited to: illumination, multicolor displays, photodetectors, spectrometers and monolithic multicolor lasers.