TiO2 nanoparticles and TiO2/CS nanocomposites have been synthesized using the sol-gel method. Characterization by XRD, FTIR, and UV-vis was carried out to determine the structure, size, functional groups, and energy band gap of the synthesized samples. Moreover, the methyl orange (MO) degradation capability of nanoparticles and nanocomposites under ultraviolet light was studied, and the results are described in detail.
TiO2 nanoparticles were successfully synthesized using a facile and scalable sol-gel method and their structural and optical properties studied. XRD ad FTIR was used to identify the phase, crystallite size, and functional groups present in the nanoparticles. The prepared samples crystallize in the anatase structure with highly crystalline order. TEM/EDX shows that the nanoparticles are pure, spherical, and with an average particle size of 15 ± 2 nm. The bandgap energy was 3.59, 3.79, and 3.64 eV, respectively. PL emission is attributed to oxygen vacancies (Vo). The calcination temperature at 450 °C suggests a better photocatalytic performance under visible light compared with other sample's thermal treatments.
CdS:Al thin films were fabricated on a glass substrate using the CBD method. The effect of aluminum incorporation on the structural, morphological, vibrational, and optical properties of CdS thin layers was investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy (RS), atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and UV-visible (UV-vis) and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopies. XRD analysis of deposited thin films confirmed a hexagonal structure with a preferred (002) orientation in all samples. The crystallite size and surface morphology of the films are modified with aluminum content. Raman spectra exhibit fundamental longitudinal optical (LO) vibrational modes and their overtones. Optical properties were studied for each thin film. Here, it was observed that the optical properties of thin films are affected by the incorporation of aluminum into the CdS structure.
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