Abstract
Ultraviolet illumination with photon energy above 4.9 eV resulted in photodarkening on sol-gel derived amorphous ZnO films. Photoreduction of ZnO to Zn metal was achieved by irradiation with energetic photons above 6.7 eV. These changes basically originated from the photo-induced charge transfer from O2- to Zn2+ in the amorphous structure. The photodarkening is ascribed to an increase in absorption in the visible region due to intermediate ionic states between the lattice oxygen and the dissociated oxygen. The formation of Zn metal was accompanied by desorption of oxygen atoms from the ZnO lattice stimulated through two-electron excitation by the energetic photons. The desorption of oxygen atoms was also observed at the surface of crystalline ZnO films. The photo-induced defective sites were highly reactive and transformed into OH groups by subsequent reaction with water molecules in air.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 3909-3915 |
Number of pages | 7 |
Journal | Japanese Journal of Applied Physics, Part 1: Regular Papers and Short Notes and Review Papers |
Volume | 41 |
Issue number | 6 A |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2002 Jun |
Keywords
- Amorphous
- Reduction
- Sol-gel
- Ultraviolet
- Zinc oxide
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Engineering(all)
- Physics and Astronomy(all)