Zinc oxide

Zinc oxide is an inorganic compound with the formula ZnO. ZnO is a white powder that is insoluble in water. It is used as an additive in numerous materials and products including cosmetics, food supplements, rubbers, plastics, ceramics, glass, cement, lubricants, paints, ointments, adhesives, sealants, pigments, foods, batteries, ferrites, fire retardants, and first-aid tapes. Although it occurs naturally as the mineral zincite, most zinc oxide is produced synthetically.

ZnO is a wide-band gap semiconductor of the II-VI semiconductor group. The native doping of the semiconductor due to oxygen vacancies or zinc interstitials is n-type. This semiconductor has several favorable properties, including good transparency, high electron mobility, wide band gap, and strong room-temperature luminescence. Those properties are valuable in emerging applications for: transparent electrodes in liquid crystal displays, energy-saving or heat-protecting windows, and electronics as thin-film transistors and light-emitting diodes.