Patent ID: 8808801

Claim:
Method of preparing nanostructured zinc oxide (ZnO) layers said layer comprising nanostructures chosen from the group of nanostructures consisting of ZnO nanorods and nanoneedles, on a substrate selected from a group consisting of Silicon, glass and quartz, said substrate having a first surface coated in a metal oxide, and a second surface, the method comprising the steps of: heating the substrate to a predetermined temperature, wherein said predetermined temperature is from 350° C. to 650° C.; atomizing a solution, comprising a precursor, an additive, and a solvent, into small discrete droplets using spray technique, wherein said precursor is selected from the group consisting of zinc chloride (ZnCl 2 ) and zinc acetate (Zn(CH 3 COO) 2 ) and said additive is selected from the group consisting of thiourea (SC(NH 2 ) 2 ) and urea (OC(NH 2 ) 2 ); and depositing the atomized solution on the first surface of the substrate, using predetermined solution feeding rate, whereas the solvent evaporates when reaching the substrate, and said precursor reacts to form the nanostructured zinc oxide layer.