Arrays of ZnO nanowires fabricated by a simple chemical solution route

A sol-gel process and a nanochannel aluminium template were employed to fabricate an orderly array of ZnO nanowires. The ZnO nanowires, with a hexagonal structure, were identified by means of x-ray diffraction and selected-area electron diffraction. The arrays of ZnO nanowires were characterized by scanning electron microscopy. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) shows that the diameters of the ZnO nanowires are very uniform, at about 60 nm. Furthermore, high-resolution TEM provides lattice images of {100}, {002} and {101} planes in the nanowires, indicating that the nanowires are well crystallized.