GISAXS/GIXRD View of ZnO Films with Hierarchical Structural Elements

Abstract

ZnO films constituted of porous sheet-like structures, formed by calcination of precursor, were examined using scanning electron microscopy and simultaneous small-angle scattering and diffraction of the synchrotron-sourced X-rays, under the grazing-incidence conditions. The presented analysis enabled insight into the complexity of the film morphology, which revealed substrate sensitivity on the microscopic and nanoscopic length scales. The average size and spatial arrangement of nanoparticles, single-crystal domains, and the average size and features of nanopores in sheet-like structures were determined for films deposited on glass, polycrystalline ZnO layer, and silicon.