Ordered zinc oxide （ZnO） rod arrays with very high orientation were fabricated on Si substrates by using a solution method. The substrate surfaces were functionalized by Self-Assembly Monolayers （SAMs）. In the very early growth stage, the oriented ZnO crystals had already grown, which appeared to be the main reason why ZnO nanorods showed very high orientation. The un-dense and un-uniform SAMs provided a surface that was heterogeneous to ZnO nucleation. Consequently, highly oriented ZnO rods were selectively grown on the ＂coin-like＂ SAM-uncovered regions. The route developed here can provide some helpful information to control the nucleation and orientation of ZnO in aqueous solution. Also, the site-selective growth mechanisms can indicate a clue to grow patterned highly oriented ZnO nanorod arrays by the organic template.
