Ultraviolet lasing behavior in ZnO optical microcavities

Zinc oxide (ZnO) optical microcavity modulated UV lasers have been attracting a wide range of research interests. As one of the most important materials in developing high quality microcavity and efficient UV-visible optoelectronic devices due to its wide band gap (3.37 eV) and large exciton binding energy (similar to 60 meV). In this review, we summarized the latest development of ZnO optical cavity based micro-lasers, mainly including Fabry-Perot mode lasers and whispering gallery mode lasers. The synthesis and optical studies of ZnO optical microcavities with different morphologies were discussed in detail. Finally, we also consider that the research focus in the near future would include new nanotechnology and physical effects, such as nano/micro fabrication, surface plasmon enhancement, and quantum dot coupling, which may result in new and interesting physical phenomena. (C) 2017 The Chinese Ceramic Society. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V.