ZnO Nanorod and rGO based nanocomposite decorated with Au nanoparticles for enhanced UV photodetection

A comprehensive analysis of a hydrothermally prepared Au nanoparticle decorated nanocomposite of reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and a ZnO nanorod (NR) for possible use as a UV photodetector is presented. The effect of rGO loading in ZnO and incorporation of Au decoration in the best combination of rGO/ZnO for possible enhancement of a photocatalytic effect are experimented. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy diffraction, and UV-Vis spectroscopy are done for morphological, structural, and optical attribute analysis of the prepared materials. An increase in photocurrent is seen from 2.19 nA to 6.14 mA in dark and UV environments (370 nm) at 5 V bias voltage for the Au decorated nanocomposite, which is found to be better among the experimented composites. The responsivity and detectivity of the Au decorated nanocomposite are analyzed with the increase in incident UV light intensities. The findings are analyzed, and an explanation of the detailed UV photodetection mechanism is outlined in this paper.