Recent Advances in 1D and 2D ZnO Nanostructure-Based Photosensors

Semiconductor metal oxide nanomaterials have achieved tremendous interest in the last few decades due to their various applications in sensing, photocatalysis, solar cell, fuel cell, etc. Among various semiconductor metal oxides, ZnO is one of the most emerging materials for sensing applications owing to its fascinating physicochemical properties and tunable morphologies. The photo-sensing performance of ZnO mainly depends on the high surface-area-to-volume ratio, porosity, physical and chemical stability, bandgap, high charge carrier generation, and effective separation. Many strategies such as doping, composites, sensitization, and morphological tuning have been reported to overcome the above limitations by improving the photo-response of the sensor. The current review gives an overview of the various factors affecting photo-sensing performance and recent advances in ZnO-based photosensors.