Size confinement for tailoring of
electronic structures can in
principle be explored for enhancement of photocatalytic properties.
In the present work, vanadium-doped bismuth oxide nanoparticles, with
an average particle size of 36 nm, are synthesized for the first time,
using the thermal plasma method, in large scale with high yield to
explore for photocatalytic applications. The electronic and crystallographic
structures of the sample are studied experimentally and theoretically.
Systematic investigations of the electronic structure of the fluorite
type cubic phase of Bi
11
VO
19
nanoparticles are
reported for the first time. Enhancement is observed in the photocatalytic
activity as compared to other delta phases of bismuth vanadate. The
valence band is found to comprise mainly of O 2p states, whereas the
conduction band arises from V 3d states giving rise to a band gap
value of 2.26 eV. Absence of excess O in δ-Bi
2
O
3
results in shrinking of the band gap because of O 2p, Bi
6s and 6p states from the surrounding atoms at doping sites. Bi
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nanoparticles show an efficient visible light
absorption and exhibit excellent photodegradation properties of methylene
blue solution under visible light irradiation.
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