Application of patterned ZnO in energy devices

ZnO is a typical direct wide band-gap semiconductor material. It has great development potential and application value, and with the rapid development of patterning technology, the precise and controllable fabrication of ZnO nanorod array is gradually being realized. This paper reviews the fabrication of patterned ZnO nanorod arrays using the laser interference lithography technique and describes in detail the applications of patterned ZnO nanorod arrays in energy devices, such as solar cells and photoelectrochemical cells. It is found that ZnO nanorod arrays prepared by laser interferometry have an enhanced light-harvesting ability and enlarged surface area, which is widely used to promote light absorption and carrier transport. It is thus considered that patterned ZnO nanorod arrays with controllable three-dimensional space structures have great research and application value.