• Journal of the Korean institute of surface engineering
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• v.51 no.4
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• pp.237-242
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• 2018

We report on the fabrication and photoelectrochemical (PEC) properties of a ZnO nanorod array structure as an efficient photoelectrode for hydrogen production from sunlight-driven water splitting. Vertically aligned ZnO nanorods were grown on an indium-tin-oxide-coated glass substrate via seed-mediated hydrothermal synthesis method with the use of a ZnO nanoparticle seed layer, which was formed by thermally oxidizing a sputtered Zn metal thin film. The structural and morphological properties of the synthesized ZnO nanorods were examined using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy, as well as Raman scattering. The PEC properties of the fabricated ZnO nanorod photoelectrode were evaluated by photocurrent conversion efficiency measurements under white light illumination. From the observed PEC current density versus voltage (J-V) behavior, the vertically aligned ZnO nanorod photoelectrode was found to exhibit a negligible dark current and high photocurrent density, e.g., $0.65mA/cm^2$ at 0.8 V vs Ag/AgCl in a 1 mM $Na_2SO_4$ electrolyte. In particular, a significant PEC performance was observed even at an applied bias of 0 V vs Ag/AgCl, which made the device self-powered.

• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.31-37
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• 2017

Recently, there has been substantial interest in flexible and wearable devices whose properties and performances are close to conventional devices on hard substrates. Despite the advancement on flexible devices with organic semiconductors or carbon nanotube films, their performances are limited by the carrier scattering at the molecular to molecular or nanotube-to-nanotube junctions. Here in this study, we demonstrate on the vertical semiconductor crystal array embedded in flexible polymer matrix. Such structures can relieve the strain effectively, thereby accommodating large flexural deformation. To achieve such structure, we first established a low-temperature solution-phase synthesis of single crystalline 3D architectures consisting of epitaxially grown ZnO constituent crystals by position and growth direction controlled growth strategy. The ZnO vertical crystal array was integrated into a piece of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) substrate, which was then mechanically detached from the hard substrate to achieve the freestanding ZnO-polymer composite. In addition, the characteristics of transferred ZnO were confirmed by additional structural and photoluminescent measurements. The ZnO vertical crystal array embedded in PDMS was further employed as pressure sensor that exhibited an active response to the external pressure, by piezoelectric effect of ZnO crystal.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.51 no.6
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• pp.774-779
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• 2013

We synthesized the solution processible monodispersed $TiO_2$ crystalline nano-sol with ~ 5 nm in size by sol-gel method. Through the spin-coating of crystalline $TiO_2$ nano-sol at low processing temperature, we could make even blocking interlayer on the rough FTO transparent electrode substrate. The rough FTO surface could be gradually smoothed by the spin-coating of nano-crystalline $TiO_2$ sol based blocking interlayer. The 1, 2.5, 5, and 10 wt% of nanocrystalline $TiO_2$ sol formed 29, 38, 62, and 226 nm-thick of blocking interlayer in present experimental condition, respectively. The 5 and 10 wt% of $TiO_2$ nano-sol could effectively fill up the valley part of bare FTO with 48.7 nm of rms (root mean square) roughness and consequently enabled the ZnO to be grown to vertically aligned one dimensional nanorods on the flattened blocking interlayer/FTO substrate.

• Proceedings of the Materials Research Society of Korea Conference
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• 2009.05a
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• pp.29.2-29.2
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• 2009

21세기 제 3의 산업혁명을 가져올 것으로 기대되는 나노기술(NT), 정보기술(IT), 바이오기술(BT)은 전 세계 과학자들의 마음을 사로잡고 있다. 이 가운데 나노기술은 전자산업에 응용 시 그 기대효과는 우리가 상상하는 이상의 것이라 예상하고 있다. 나노기술에 특히 관심을 가지는 이유는 물질이 마이크로미터 크기로 작아져도 벌크물질의 물리적 특성이 그대로 유지되지만, 나노미터 크기가 되면서 우리가 경험하지 못했던 새로운 물리적 특성들이 발현되기 때문이다. 그 특성에는 양자구속효과, Hall-Petch 효과, 자기효과 등이 있다. 나노기술의 구현은 양자점과 같은 영차원 나노입자, 나노와이어, 나노막대, 나노리본 등과 같은 직경이 100nm 이하의 일차원 구조의 나노물질 및 나노박막과 기타 100nm 이하의 나노구조물들이 사용된다. 현재 일차원 구조를 이용한 전자디바이스화 연구는 결정성장을 정확하게 조절하는 합성기술, 합성된 일차원 나노물질의 물리적 특성을 지배하는 각종 파라미터들과 물리적 특성들과의 상관관계 정립, 나노와이어를 이용한 Bottom-up 방식에 의한 조립기술 확보를 위해 활발히 진행 중이다. 하지만 나노구조의 특성을 확인하는 형태의 연구일 뿐, 실제 디바이스 구현에는 여전히 많은 과제를 안고 있다. 본 연구에서는 선택적 삼원계 단결정 씨앗층을 이용한 길이/직경 비가 매우 향상된 MgZnO 나노와이어를 interfacial layer 없이 수직으로 성장하여 산화물 전계방출 에미터로서의 가능성을 확인하였다.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.32-37
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• 2018

We report on the efficient detection of NO gas by an all-oxide semiconductor p-n heterojunction diode structure comprised of n-type zinc oxide (ZnO) nanorods embedded in p-type copper oxide (CuO) thin film. The CuO thin film/ZnO nanorod heterostructure was fabricated by directly sputtering CuO thin film onto a vertically aligned ZnO nanorod array synthesized via a hydrothemal method. The transport behavior and NO gas sensing properties of the fabricated CuO thin film/ZnO nanorod heterostructure were charcterized and revealed that the oxide semiconductor heterojunction exhibited a definite rectifying diode-like behavior at various temperatures ranging from room temperature to $250^{\circ}C$. The NO gas sensing experiment indicated that the CuO thin film/ZnO nanorod heterostructure had a good sensing performance for the efficient detection of NO gas in the range of 2-14 ppm under the conditions of an applied bias of 2 V and a comparatively low operating temperature of $150^{\circ}C$. The NO gas sensing process in the CuO/ZnO p-n heterostructure is discussed in terms of the electronic band structure.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.214-220
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• 2018

We report on the fabrication and photoelectrochemical(PEC) properties of a $Cu_2O$ thin film/ZnO nanorod array oxide p-n heterojunction structure with ZnO nanorods embedded in $Cu_2O$ thin film as an efficient photoelectrode for solar-driven water splitting. A vertically oriented n-type ZnO nanorod array was first prepared on an indium-tin-oxide-coated glass substrate via a seed-mediated hydrothermal synthesis method and then a p-type $Cu_2O$ thin film was directly electrodeposited onto the vertically oriented ZnO nanorods array to form an oxide semiconductor heterostructure. The crystalline phases and morphologies of the heterojunction materials were characterized using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy as well as Raman scattering. The PEC properties of the fabricated $Cu_2O/ZnO$ p-n heterojunction photoelectrode were evaluated by photocurrent conversion efficiency measurements under white light illumination. From the observed PEC current density versus voltage (J-V) behavior, the $Cu_2O/ZnO$ photoelectrode was found to exhibit a negligible dark current and high photocurrent density, e.g., $0.77mA/cm^2$ at 0.5 V vs $Hg/HgCl_2$ in a $1mM\;Na_2SO_4$ electrolyte, revealing an effective operation of the oxide heterostructure. In particular, a significant PEC performance was observed even at an applied bias of 0 V vs $Hg/HgCl_2$, which made the device self-powered. The observed PEC performance was attributed to some synergistic effect of the p-n bilayer heterostructure on the formation of a built-in potential, including the light absorption and separation processes of photoinduced charge carriers.

• Progress in Superconductivity
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.47-51
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• 2009

For many large-scale applications of high-temperature superconducting materials, large critical current density ($J_c$) in high applied magnetic fields are required. A number of methods have been reported to introduce artificial pinning centers in $YBa_2Cu_3O_{7-{\delta}}$ films for enhancement of their $J_c$. We studied the microstructures and characteristic of $YBa_2Cu_3O_{7-{\delta}}$ films fabricated on $SrTiO_3$ (100) substrates with ZnO nanorods as pinning centers. Au catalyst nanoparticles were synthesized on STO substrates with self assembled monolayer to control the number of ZnO nanorods. The density of Au nanoparticles is approximately $240{\sim}260{\mu}m^{-2}$ with diameters of $41{\sim}49nm$. ZnO nanorods were grown on STO by hot-walled PLD with Au nanoparticles. Typical size of ZnO nanorod was around 179 nm in diameter and $2{\sim}6{\mu}m$ in length respectively. YBCO films deposited directly on STO substrates show the c-axis orientation, while YBCO films with ZnO nanorods exhibit any mixed phases without any typical crystal orientation.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.147-150
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• 2008

Multiple ZnO nanorod device detecting $NO_2$ gas was fabricated by sol-gel growth method and gas response characteristics were measured as a chemical gas sensor. The device is mainly composed of sensing electrode and sensing nano material. To acquire high sensitivity of the device for $NO_2$ gas it was heated by a heat chuck up to $400^{\circ}C$ The sensing part was easily made using the CMOS compatible process, for example, the large area and low temperature nano material growth process, etc. The sensors were successfully demonstrated and showed high sensitive response for $NO_2$ gas sensing.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.278-283
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• 2014

In this study, we propose an immunosensor using zinc oxide nanorods (NRs) inside PDMS channel for detecting the influenza A virus subtype H7N9. ZnO with high isoelectric point (IEP, ~9.5) makes it suitable for immobilizing proteins with low IEP. In this proposed H7N9 immunosensor structure ZnO NRs were grown on the PDMS channel inner surface to immobilize H7N9 capture antibody. A sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method with was used 3,3',5,5' tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) for detecting H7N9 influenza virus. The immunosensor was evaluated by amperometry at various H7N9 influenza antigen concentrations (1 pg/ml - 1 ng/ml). The redox peak voltage and current were measured by amperometry with ZnO NWs and without ZnO NWs inside PDMS channel. The measurement results of the H7N9 immunosensor showed that oxidation peak current of TMB at 0.25 V logarithmically increased from 2.3 to 3.8 uA as the H7N9 influenza antigen concentration changed from 1 pg/ml to 1 ng/ml. And then we demonstrated that ZnO NRs inside PDMS channel can improve the sensitivity of immunosensor to compare non-ZnO NRs inside PDMS channel.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.27 no.12
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• pp.658-663
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• 2017

Urchin-structured zinc oxide(ZnO) nanorod(NR) gas sensors were successfully demonstrated on a polyimide(PI) substrate, using single wall carbon nanotubes(SWCNTs) as the electrode. The ZnO NRs were grown with ZnO shells arranged at regular intervals to form a network structure with maximized surface area. The high surface area and numerous junctions of the NR network structure was the key to excellent gas sensing performance. Moreover, the SWCNTs formed a junction barrier with the ZnO which further improved sensor characteristics. The fabricated urchin-structured ZnO NR gas sensors exhibited superior performance upon $NO_2$ exposure with a stable response of 110, fast rise and decay times of 38 and 24 sec, respectively. Comparative analyses revealed that the high performance of the sensors was due to a combination of high surface area, numerous active junction points, and the use of the SWCNTs electrode. Furthermore, the urchin-structured ZnO NR gas sensors showed sustainable mechanical stability. Although degradation of the devices progressed during repeated flexibility tests, the sensors were still operational even after 10000 cycles of a bending test with a radius of curvature of 5 mm.