Raman and photoluminescence spectroscopy investigations of ZnO nanostructures

We discuss Raman and photoluminescence (PL) studies of ZnO in solid, thin film and nanowire samples. Resonant laser excitations ranging from near-infrared to ultraviolet are used in order to observe and analyse ZnO nanostructures. The changes of optical emission and electronic bandgap response to the vibration modes are studied simultaneously by PL and Raman spectroscopy. Both Raman and PL spectroscopy analyses of nanostructure, electronic bandgaps and photo-emission demonstrate that nanostructure geometry, including its aspect ratio, and phonon–electron interactions play important roles in polar semiconductor structures such as ZnO.