Replicating hexagonal metal nanorod from ZnO nanorod

A novel nanoporous array template with hexagonal nanorod-like morphology was developed with sacrificing nanostructured ZnO. ZnO hexagonal nanorod (NR) array was first electrochemically deposited on ITO, and then was spin-coated with photoresist (PR) followed by heating treatment to harden the PR film. After resolving the ZnO NRs in diluted hydrochloric acid solution, the template with ZnO NR-like nanopores was obtained. The as-prepared template has good stability and uniformity. Additionally, by controlling the deposition charge of ZnO, and the rinsing time in removing a PR layer to expose ZnO top end, the size and pore-density of the template can be controlled. In presence of glucose, an enhancement in oxidation current of Ni NRs was observed due to an electrochemical catalytic reaction scheme. So the Ni NR array modified ITO electrode can be applied for glucose sensing. And the Ni NR array with a higher density gave a higher sensitivity.