ZnO tetrapod nanostructures have been prepared by the evaporation of Zn in air (no flow), dry and humid argon flow, and dry and humid nitrogen flow. Their properties have been investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X‐ray diffraction (XRD), photoluminescence (PL) and photoluminescence excitation (PLE) spectroscopies (at different temperatures), and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy at –160 °C and room temperature. It is found that the fabrication conditions significantly influence the EPR and PL spectra obtained. While a g = 1.96 EPR signal is present in some of the samples, green PL emission can be observed from all the samples. Therefore, the green emission in our samples does not originate from the commonly assumed transition between a singly charged oxygen vacancy and a photoexcited hole [K. Vanheusden, C. H. Seager, W. L. Warren, D. R. Tallant, J. A. Voigt, Appl. Phys. Lett. 1996, 68, 403]. However, the green emission can be suppressed by coating the nanostructures with a surfactant for all fabrication conditions, which indicates that this emission originates from surface defects.

Flexible non-volatile memories have attracted tremendous attentions for data storage for future electronics application. From device perspective, the advantages of flexible memory devices include thin, lightweight, printable, foldable and stretchable. The flash memories, resistive random access memories (RRAM) and ferroelectric random access memory/ferroelectric field-effect transistor memories (FeRAM/FeFET) are considered as promising candidates for next generation non-volatile memory device. Here, we review the general background knowledge on device structure, working principle, materials, challenges and recent progress with the emphasis on the flexibility of above three categories of non-volatile memories.

Flexible sensors that efficiently detect various stimuli relevant to specific environmental or biological species have been extensively studied due to their great potential for the Internet of Things and wearable electronics applications. The application of flexible and stretchable electronics to device-engineering technologies has enabled the fabrication of slender, lightweight, stretchable, and foldable sensors. Here, recent studies on flexible sensors for biological analytes, ions, light, and pH are outlined. In addition, contemporary studies on device structure, materials, and fabrication methods for flexible sensors are discussed, and a market overview is provided. The conclusion presents challenges and perspectives in this field.

The morphology and optical properties of ZnO nanostructures prepared by thermal evaporation of Zn under different conditions was investigated. ZnO nanostructures prepared in air, dry and humid argon flow, and dry and humid nitrogen flow were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, x-ray diffraction, and photoluminescence. Tetrapod nanorods were obtained for fabrication in air, while for fabrication in argon or nitrogen flow nanowires and tetrapod nanorods were obtained. Growth of nanowires from the end of the tetrapod nanorod was observed. Influence of the preparation conditions on the structure and the room-temperature photoluminescence is discussed.

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COMMUNICATIONwith the fl exible substrate, and almost no device degradation has been found under bending tests.

A uniform monolayer of alkanethiol-protected gold nanoparticle arrays with ultrahigh density have been used as microcontact-printable charge-trapping layers for the application in flexible flash memories. The new devices are compared to two reference devices with a floating gate created by thermal evaporation and electrostatic self-assembly, and show a large memory window, long retention times and good endurance properties.

Arrays of ZnO/Zn(x)Cd(1-x)Se (0 ≤ x ≤ 1) core/shell nanocables with shells of tunable compositions have been synthesized on fluorine-doped tin oxide glass substrates via a simple ion-exchange approach. Through the effects of stoichiometry and type II heterojunction, optical absorptions of the nanocable arrays can be controllably tuned to cover almost the entire visible spectrum. Lattice parameters and band gaps of the ternary Zn(x)Cd(1-x)Se shells were found to have respectively linear and quadratic relationships with the Zn content (x). These ZnO/Zn(x)Cd(1-x)Se nanocable arrays are further demonstrated to be promising photoelectrodes for photoelectrochemical solar cells, giving a maximum power conversion efficiency up to 4.74%.