Surfactant-mediated growth of nanostructured zinc oxide thin films via electrodeposition and their photoelectrochemical performance

Abstract

Zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films were electrodeposited from an aqueous zinc acetate solution onto fluorine-doped thin oxide (FTO) coated conducting glass substrates. The effect of organic surfactants like polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP), sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), polyethylene glycol (PEG), ethylene glycol (EG) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) on their structural, morphological, optical and photoelectrochemical properties was studied. The x-ray diffraction patterns revealed the formation of phase-pure ZnO thin films. The films deposited using organic surfactants exhibit different surface morphologies. It was observed that the organic surfactants play important roles in modifying the surface morphology and size of the crystallites. A compact granular morphology was observed for the ZnO samples grown without organic surfactants. The films exhibit nanoparticles of size 100-150 nm for PVP, EG and PVA mediated growth. The vertically aligned thin and compact hexagonal crystallites stem from the SDS, whereas microporous corrugated morphology is observed for PEG-mediated growth. All the samples exhibit room temperature photoluminescence (PL). Oxygen vacancies contribute to the active luminescent centers for the emission of green light in ZnO thin films. PL gets quenched for the SDS surfactant. All the samples were post-treated with ethanol to remove stray surfactant molecules. FTIR study was used to confirm the removal of adsorbed surfactant molecules from the samples. Moreover the samples are photoelectrochemically (PEC) active and exhibit the highest photocurrent of 231 µA, a photovoltage of 492 mV and 0.42 fill factor for the ZnO:SDS films.

Chemically Modified Metal Oxide Nanostructures Electrodes for Sensing and Energy Conversion

“…optical, electrical and catalytic have been modulated. 92,138 In contrast, the incorporation of inorganic material into ZnO NRs with a certain concentration has no role on the morphology, but the aforementioned characteristics were notably modified. 139,140 Note that the PEG is completely miscible with water and has found many applications in current technology as antifreeze when mixed with water.…”

A ppb-Level Formaldehyde Gas Sensor Based on Rose-Like Nickel Oxide Nanoparticles Prepared Using Electrodeposition Process

“…13 Electrodeposition is one of the most popular methods due to low cost and feasibility of room temperature growth in large areas. 14 It is known that many properties of materials depend on their nanostructures. The°ower-like morphology that could enhance electrochemical activity of the electrode and provide larger contact area between active material and electrolyte, were supposed to exhibit better electrochemical properties than conventional materials.…”

Template-controlled mineralization: Determining film granularity and structure by surface functionality patterns

“…In this way the properties of the deposited material are controlled depending on the surface functionality of the template. The properties that can be controlled by template functionality can be structural, topographical, electrical, mechanical, piezoelectrical, adhesive, tribological, catalytic activity [19] or properties connected with the granularity of the film [20][21][22][23]. Additionally, the reflectivity or light scattering properties may be controlled -the latter of which are highly relevant for the fields of optical data storage [24,25] and lithography (where increasingly smaller structures are sought, e.g., in the field of semiconductor nanolithography).…”