Periodic ZnO nanorod arrays defined by polystyrene microsphere self-assembled monolayers

We demonstrate a low-cost and effective method to fabricate hexagonally patterned, vertically aligned ZnO nanorod arrays. Selective wet-etching is used to develop the catalyzing gold particle hexagonal pattern with the aid of a polystyrene microsphere self-assembled monolayer. The gold particles have tunable sizes independent of the polystyrene microsphere's diameter and are inherently round in shape. Each ZnO rod is grown individually from a catalyzing site via catalyst-initiated epitaxy, and the original hexagonal periodicity is well-preserved. The rods have flat ends, and the diameters of the rods can be controlled well by the amount of source materials. This method provides a promising way to create ZnO one-dimensional nanostructures for applications as two-dimensional photonic crystal, sensor arrays, nanolaser arrays, and optoelectronic devices.