ZnO nanofibers were successfully prepared by electrospinning a precursor mixture of polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)/zinc acetate, followed by calcination treatment of the electrospun composite nanofibers. The effect of applied voltage to the morphology of nanofibers was studied. Both PVP/Zn acetate and ZnO nanofibers were characterized by FESEM and XRD. The results show that the diameter of the nanofibers changed with applied voltage. Results found that the optimum calcined temperature was 500°C to produce continuous ZnO nanofibers.
In this paper, we aim to examine the research and development of materials demonstrating the giant magnetoresistance (GMR) property, a novel material property that has revolutionalised the advances of magnetic sensor and mass-memory technology today. A comprehensive outline for the fundamental materials aspects as well as the physics of the underlying mechanisms behind the GMR property is given. Recent development of GMR materials in data storage industry and other potential technological applications exploiting the GMR property are also discussed.
The science of biomimicry has served as a fusion point between nature and technology where one could adopt nature’s best solution for human’s use. Lotus leaf, for example, possesses self-cleaning capability due to the unique physical and chemical properties of its surface structural features. In this work, we aimed to mimic these features on glass surface using ZnO nanostructures to achieve the self-cleaning functionality. A series of ZnO films were electrochemically deposited on indium-doped tin oxide (ITO) conducting glass substrates from different aqueous electrolytes at systematically varied deposition potentials and electrolyte conditions. The surface morphology, density, orientation and aspect ratio of the ZnO micro/nanostructures obtained were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). ZnO ranging from two dimensional plate-like to one-dimensional needle-like micro/nanostructures were observed. Results from these studies show that lower electrolyte concentrations tend to favor one-dimensional growth of ZnO nanostructures that self-assembled into micron-size flower-like clusters at higher deposition temperatures. The ZnO-modified hierarchical dual-structured surface exhibits superhydrophobic property with water contact angle as high as 170o.
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