Deposition of Nanoparticle-Aggregated ZnO Thin Films by Drop Coating Method

Nitrogen-doped ZnO nanoparticles were prepared by a gas evaporation method. We chose a drop coating method for the deposition of thin films from a dispersion of the nanoparticles in water. The drop coating method appears to be the optimum method for the deposition of thin films from the dispersions. Sintering at 300 °C improved the deposition of a thin film compared with that of films dried at room temperature. Photoluminescence spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy showed that high-density aggregated films were formed by the drop coating method.