Phosphorus acceptor doped ZnO nanowires prepared by pulsed-laser deposition

Phosphorus-doped ZnO (ZnO: P) nanowires were successfully prepared by a novel high-pressure pulsed- laser deposition process using phosphorus pentoxide as the dopant source. Detailed cathodoluminescence studies of single ZnO: P nanowires revealed characteristic phosphorus acceptor-related peaks: neutral acceptor-bound exciton emission (A(0), X, 3.356 eV), free-to-neutral-acceptor emission (e, A(0), 3.314 eV), and donor-to-acceptor pair emission (DAP, similar to 3.24 and similar to 3.04 eV). This means that stable acceptor levels with a binding energy of about 122 meV have been induced in the nanowires by phosphorus doping. Moreover, the induced acceptors are distributed homogeneously along the doped nanowires.