Fabrication of CuO and ZnO Semiconductors using an Electrical Furnace

Zinc oxide(ZnO)/cupric oxide(CuO) is a heterojunction with promising applications in electronic devices such as solar cells, chemical gas sensors, among others. In the present work, it is reported the fabrication of a copper oxide (CuO) and zinc oxide (ZnO) semiconductors using a homemade electrical furnace. CuO was obtained by thermal oxidation (1000 ?C) of Cu foils, which were previously thinned from 300 ?m to about 100 ?m in a ferric chloride solution. ZnO layers were obtained in two steps: firstly, Zn layers were obtained on quartz substrates by atmospheric pressure thermal evaporation of Zn shaves. Then, thermal oxidation was performed to the Zn layers. The CuO and ZnO semiconductors were characterized by Raman scattering and scanning electron microscopy techniques.