Single-crystalline ZnS nanobelts as ultraviolet-light sensors

Abstract

A study was conducted to design and fabricate the first ZnS-nanobelt visible-light-blind UV-light sensors and record their sharp UV-light emission at room temperature (RT). It compared the enhanced stability and sensitivity of the UV sensors composed of multiple ZnS-nanobelt devices with the individual nanobelt-based sensors. A scanning electron microscopy (SEM) image revealed that the nanobelts grown from several separated nucleation sites were connected. These images showed that the nanobelts had grown up to a length of one millimeter. The nanobelts covered the whole substrate and their yield varied from place to place depending on local temperature. The high-magnification SEM image showed that the nanobelts had a width of up to a micrometer. A transmission electron microscopy (TEM) image also revealed that the ZnS nanostructures were transparent and had a geometric structure similar to a belt.