Synthesis and characterization of Mn-doped ZnO column arrays

Abstract Mn-doped ZnO column arrays were successfully synthesized by conventional sol–gel process. Effect of Mn/Zn atomic ratio and reaction time were investigated, and the morphology, tropism and optical properties of Mn-doped ZnO column arrays were characterized by SEM, XRD and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. The result shows that a Mn/Zn atomic ratio of 0.1 and growth time of 12 h are the optimal condition for the preparation of densely distributed ZnO column arrays. XRD analysis shows that Mn-doped ZnO column arrays are highly c-axis oriented. As for Mn-doped ZnO column arrays, obvious increase of photoluminescence intensity is observed at the wavelength of ∼395 nm and ∼413 nm, compared to pure ZnO column arrays.