Pressure response of the ultraviolet photoluminescence of ZnO and MgZnO nanocrystallites

The pressure response of the ultraviolet photoluminescence of ZnO nanocrystallites and MgZnO nanoalloy of composition 15% Mg:85% Zn of the wurtzite structure was studied. The authors found that up to 7 GPa the pressure coefficients of ZnO and MgZnO are 23.6 and 27.1 meV/GPa, respectively. The pressure coefficient of the ZnO nanocrystallites is similar to that reported elsewhere for bulk ZnO material. The higher value found for MgZnO is discussed in terms of the d orbitals of the alloy constituents and their compliance to stress. Additionally, the volume deformation potential was derived from the experimental results. (c) 2006 American Institute of Physics.