• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.187-193
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• 2020

Ultraviolet (UV) sensors are widely applied in industrial and military fields such as environmental monitoring, medicine and astronomy. Zinc oxide (ZnO) is considered as one of the promising materials for UV sensors because of its ease of fabrication, wide bandgap (3.37 eV) and high chemical stability. In this study, we used the hydrothermal growth of ZnO to form two types of ZnO nanostructures (Nanoflower and nanorod) and applied them to a UV sensor. To improve the performance of the UV sensor, the hydrothermal growth was used in a two-step process for fabricating ZnO hierarchical nanostructures. The fabricated ZnO hierarchical nanostructure improved the performance of the UV sensor by increasing the ratio of volume to surface area and the number of nanojunctions compared to one-step hydrothermal grown ZnO nanostructure. The UV sensor based on the ZnO hierarchical nanostructure had a maximum photocurrent of 44 ㎂, which is approximately 3 times higher than that of a single nanostructure. The UV sensor fabrication method presented in this study is simple and based on the hydrothermal solution process, which is advantageous for large-area production and mass production; this provides scope for extensive research in the field of UV sensors.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2012.08a
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• pp.389-390
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• 2012

In this study, we fabricate a superhydrophobic surface made of hierarchical nanostructures that combine wax crystalline structure with moth-eye structure using vacuum cluster system and measure their hydrophobicity and durability. Since the lotus effect was found, much work has been done on studying self-cleaning surface for decades. The surface of lotus leaf consists of multi-level layers of micro scale papillose epidermal cells and epicuticular wax crystalloids [1]. This hierarchical structure has superhydrophobic property because the sufficiently rough surface allows air pockets to form easily below the liquid, the so-called Cassie state, so that the relatively small area of water/solid interface makes the energetic cost associated with corresponding water/air interfaces smaller than the energy gained [2]. Various nanostructures have been reported for fabricating the self-cleaning surface but in general, they have the problem of low durability. More than two nanostructures on a surface can be integrated together to increase hydrophobicity and durability of the surface as in the lotus leaf [3,5]. As one of the bio-inspired nanostructures, we introduce a hierarchical nanostructure fabricated with a high vacuum cluster system. A hierarchical nanostructure is a combination of moth-eye structure with an average pitch of 300 nm and height of 700 nm, and the wax crystalline structure with an average width and height of 200 nm. The moth-eye structure is fabricated with deep reactive ion etching (DRIE) process. $SiO_2$ layer is initially deposited on a glass substrate using PECVD in the cluster system. Then, Au seed layer is deposited for a few second using DC sputtering process to provide stochastic mask for etching the underlying $SiO_2$ layer with ICP-RIE so that moth-eye structure can be fabricated. Additionally, n-hexatriacontane paraffin wax ($C_{36}H_{74}$) is deposited on the moth-eye structure in a thermal evaporator and self-recrystallized at $40^{\circ}C$ for 4h [4]. All of steps are conducted utilizing vacuum cluster system to minimize the contamination. The water contact angles are measured by tensiometer. The morphology of the surface is characterized using SEM and AFM and the reflectance is measured by spectrophotometer.

• Composites Research
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.17-20
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• 2007

Superhydrophobic polytetrafluoroethylene ($Teflon^{(R)}$, Dupont) sub-micro and nanostructures were fabricated by the dipping method, based on anodization process in oxalic acid. The polymer sticking phenomenon during the replication creates the sub-microstructures on the negative polytetrafluoroethylene nanostructure replica. This process gives a hierarchical structure with nanostructures on sub-microstructures, which looks like the same structures as lotus leaf and enables commercialization. The diameter and the height of the replicated nano pillars were 40 nm and 40 um respectively. The aspect ratio is approximately 1000. The fabricated surface has a semi-permanent superhydrophobicity, the apparent contact angle of the polytetrafluoroethylene sub-micro and nanostructures is about $160^{\circ}$, and the sliding angle is less than $1^{\circ}$.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.244-248
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• 2022

Recently, several studies on the development of superhydrophobic surfaces using various nano-sized carbon-based materials have been conducted. The superhydrophobic surfaces developed using carbon soot have advantages such as low processing cost and remarkable physical and chemical properties. However, their durability is low. To address this problem, in this study, a superhydrophobic surface with high durability and a multilayer structure was fabricated using ethanol vapor treatment. Candle soot was deposited on an aluminum substrate coated with paraffin wax, and a micro-nano multilayer structure with a size of several micrometers was fabricated via ethanol vapor treatment. The fabricated superhydrophobic surface was confirmed to have a contact angle of at least 156° and high durability. Finally, it was confirmed that ethanol vapor not only changed the nanostructure of carbon but also affected the durability of the structure.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2016.02a
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• pp.130-130
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• 2016

Bioinspired hierarchical nanostructures for self-cleaning s-tnwjurface and SERS substrates are investigated. The multi-level hierarchy is combined with CuO nanowire and additional nanoscale structures. CuO nanowire, which has extremely high aspect ratio, serves as a base structure of multi-level hierarchy and additional flower like structures are placed on the CuO nanowires. Since as-fabricated CuO nanostructures are hydrophilic, the surface is coated with perfluorooctyltrichlorosilane in order to change its wetting property to hydrophobic. While those CuO based nanostructures have a sufficient roughness for superhydrophobic characteristics, hierarchical nanoflowers on nanowire structures lead to a self-cleaning surface. Furthermore, flower like nanostructures provide reentrant curvatures, thus enabling oleophobic property. The surfaces has a repellency even for a tiny droplet (10 nL) of low surface tension liquids (~35 mN/m). On the on hands, nanoflowers provide many number of nanoscale gaps. After a thin layer of silver is deposited on the surface of CuO nanostructures, those nanoscale gaps act as hot-spot for surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS). To analyze SERS enhancement of the surfaces, Raman shift is measured with varying molar density of 4-Mercaptopyridine from mM to pM. From these results, hierarchical CuO nanostructures are suitable for self-maintenance and cost effective SERS sensing applications.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2013.02a
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• pp.97-97
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• 2013

The exterior structures of natural organisms have continuously evolved by controlling wettability, such as the Namib Desert beetle, whose back has hydrophilic/hydrophobic contrast for water harvesting by mist condensation in dry desert environments, and some plant leaves that have hierarchical micro/nanostructures to collect or repel liquid water. In this work, we have provided a method for wettability contrast on metals by both nano-flake or needle patterns and tuning of the surface energy. Metals including steel alloys and aluminum were provided with hierarchical micro/nanostructures of metaloxides induced by fluorination and a subsequent catalytic reaction of fluorine ions on metal surfaces in water with various ranges from room to boiling temperature of water. Then, a hydrophobic material was deposited on the structured surfaces, rendering superhydrophobicity. Plasma oxidization induces the formation of superhydrophilic surfaces on selective regions surrounded by superhydrophobic surfaces. We show that wettability contrast surfaces align liquid water within patterned hydrophilic regions during the condensation process. Furthermore, this method could have a greater potential to align other liquids or living cells.

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.381-387
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• 2020

In this work, TiO₂ 3D nanostructures (TF30) were prepared via a facile wet chemical process using ammonium hexafluorotitanate. The synthesized 3D TiO₂ nanostructures exhibited well-defined crystalline and hierarchical structures assembled from TiO₂ nanorods with different thicknesses and diameters, which comprised numerous small beads. Moreover, the maximum specific surface area of TiO₂ 3D nanostructures was observed to be 191 ㎡g^-1, with concentration of F ions on the surface being 2 at%. The TiO₂ 3D nanostructures were tested as photocatalysts under UV irradiation using Rhodamine B solution in order to determine their photocatalytic performance. The TiO₂ 3D nanostructures showed a higher photocatalytic activity than that of the other TiO₂ samples, which was likely associated with the combined effects of a high crystallinity, unique features of the hierarchical structure, a high specific surface area, and the advantage of adsorbing F ions.

• Corrosion Science and Technology
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• v.18 no.6
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• pp.228-231
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• 2019

Aluminum and its alloys have been widely used in various fields because of low weight, high strength, good conductivity, and low price. It is well known that aluminum alloys that cause natural oxide film can inhibit corrosion in wet, salty environments. However, these oxides are so thin that corrosion occurs in a variety of environments. To prevent this problem, an electrochemical anodizing technique was applied to the aluminum alloy surface to form a thick layer of oxide and a unique oxide shape, such as a hierarchical pore structure simultaneously combining large and small pores. The shape of the structures was implemented using stepwise anodization voltages such as 40 V for mild anodizing and 80 V for hard anodizing, respectively. To maximize water repellency, it is crucial to the role of surface structures shape. And a hydrophobic thin film was coated by 1H, 1H, 2H, 2H-Perfluorodecyltrichlorosilane (FDTS) to minimize surface energy of the structure surface. Thus, such nanoengineered superhydrophobic surface exhibited a high water contact angle and excellent corrosion resistance such as low corrosion current density and inhibition efficiency.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.23 no.11
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• pp.655-660
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• 2013

Photoelectrochemical cells have been used in photolysis of water to generate hydrogen as a clean energy source. A high efficiency electrode for photoelectrochemical cell systems was realized using a ZnO hierarchical nanostructure. A ZnO nanofiber mat structure was fabricated by electrospinning of Zn solution on the substrate, followed by oxidation; on this substrate, hydrothermal synthesis of ZnO nanorods on the ZnO nanofibers was carried out to form a ZnO hierarchical structure. The thickness of the nanofiber mat and the thermal annealing temperature were determined as the parameters for optimization. The morphology of the structures was examined by field-emission scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and X-ray diffraction. The performance of the ZnO nanofiber mat and the potential of the ZnO hierarchical structures as photoelectrochemical cell electrodes were evaluated by measurement of the photoelectron conversion efficiencies under UV light. The highest photoconversion efficiency observed was 63 % with a ZnO hierarchical structure annealed at $400^{\circ}C$ in air. The morphology and the crystalline quality of the electrode materials greatly influenced the electrode performance. Therefore, the combination of the two fabrication methods, electrospinning and hydrothermal synthesis, was successfully applied to fabricate a high performance photoelectrochemical cell electrode.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.33 no.10
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• pp.3378-3382
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• 2012

A superhydrophobic surface with a water contact angle > $150^{\circ}$ has attracted great interest from both fundamental and practical aspects. In this study, we demonstrated that hydrophobicity of a silica nanotube (SNT) array can be easily controlled by the SNT aspect ratio. In addition, the adhesive and anti-adhesive properties were controlled without modifying the hydrophobic surface. Various silica structures on a polydimethylsiloxane substrate were prepared using the desired alumina template. Bundle-arrayed and bowl-arrayed silica surfaces exhibited extraordinary superhydrophobicity due to the large frontal surface area and hierarchical micro/nanostructure. As the strategy used in this study is biocompatible and a wide range of hydrophobicities are capable of being controlled by the SNT aspect ratio, a hydrophobic surface composed of an SNT array could be an attractive candidate for bioapplications, such as cell and protein chips.