A sol-gel route for the development of rare-earth aluminum borate nanopowders and transparent thin films

A new sol-gel route was applied to obtain Y_0.9Er_0.1Al₃(BO₃)₄ crystalline powders and amorphous thin films by using Al(acac)₃, B(OPrⁱ)₃, Y(NO₃)₃·6H₂O, and Er(NO₃)₃·5H₂O as starting materials dissolved in propionic acid and ethyl alcohol mixtures. Our study shows that propionic acid acts as good chelant agent for yttrium and erbium ions while ethyl alcohol allows to dissolve Al(acac)₃. This process makes the resulting sols very stable to obtain homogeneous gels and transparent amorphous thin films. In addition, the propionic acid prevents the sol precipitation, making easy porous- and crack-free thin film depositions. Chemical reactions involved in the complexation were discussed. As-prepared powders and films are amorphous and present a good thermal stability due to their high glass transition (746 °C) and crystallization temperatures (830 °C). This new sol-gel route showed to be adequate to obtain dense and crack-free thin films free of organic and hydroxyl groups that can be considered as promising materials to be used in integrated optical systems.     

Visible Up-Conversion Luminescence in Ho3+: BaTiO3 Nano-Crystals Prepared by Sol Gel Technique

Visible up-conversion emissions at (435, 545, 580, 675 and 690 nm) and (437, 547 575 and 675 nm) have been observed from the sol-gel derived nano-crystalline Ho³⁺: BaTiO₃ powders and thin films respectively, under 808 nm laser diode excitation emissions. Combined with the energy level structure of Ho³⁺ ions and the kinetics of the visible emissions, the up-conversion mechanism has been analyzed and explained. The blue, green and red emissions of both samples has been attributed to the ground state-directed transition from (⁵F₁), (⁵S₂) and (⁵F₅), which are populated through excited state absorption (ESA) for 808 nm excitation. Nano-structure pure barium titanate and doped with different concentrations of Ho³⁺ ions in the from of powder and thin film have been prepared by sol-gel technique, using barium acetate (Ba(Ac)₂), and titanium butoxide (Ti(C₄H₉O)₄), as precursors. The thin films were prepared by sol-gel spin coating method. The as-grown thin films and powders were found to be amorphous, which crystallized to the tetragonal phase after heating at 750°C in air for 30 minutes. The crystallite sizes of the thin film and powder both doped with 4% Ho³⁺ ions was found to be equal to 11 and 16 nm, respectvely.     

Structure and Optical Properties of 0.1BiFeO3-0.9SrBi2Nb2O9 Thin Films Using a Modified Sol-Gel Technique

Fe-doped SrBi₂Nb₂O₉ precursor solution was synthesized using bismuth nitrate Bi(NO₃)₃·5H₂O, strontium nitrate Sr(NO₃)₂, iron nitrate Fe(NO₃)₃·9H₂O, and niobium ethoxide Nb(OC₂H₅)₅ as starting materials, ethylene glycol monomethyl ether (C₃H₈O₂) as the solvent. 0.1BiFeO₃-0.9SrBi₂Nb₂O₉ thin films were prepared on fused quartz substrates using sol-gel processing. The surface morphology and crystal structure and optical properties of the thin films were investigated. The thin film annealing at 400°C were found to be amorphous, and the thin films crystallize to a perovskite structure after a post-deposition annealing at 600°C for 1 h in air. The grain of thin film was evenly distributed. The thin films exhibit the designed optical transmission, while the optical transition is indirect in nature. Their optical band gap is about 2.5 eV.     

Ba Titanate and Barium/Strontium Titanate Thin Films from Hydroxide Precursors: Preparation and Ferroelectric Behavior

Randomly oriented ferroelectric BaTiO₃ and (Ba_0.6Sr_0.4) TiO₃ thin films on platinum coated Si (100) were prepared by a sol-gel method. The precursor solutions were derived from barium hydroxide or a mixture of barium/strontium hydroxides dissolved in acetic acid and titanium butoxide. Polarization versus applied voltage hysteresis studies indicated a remanent polarization of 3 µC/cm² and a coercive field of 43.4 kV/cm for BaTiO₃ films annealed at 800°C for 1 h. Corresponding parameters for (Ba_0.6Sr_0.4)TiO₃ films annealed at 800°C were found to be 7.2 µC/cm² and 102.7 kV/cm, respectively. Microstructural study of the surface morphology of these films indicated grains of less than 0.1 µm in size. The leakage current for (Ba_0.6Sr_0.4)TiO₃ films was found to be two orders of magnitude lower than that for BaTiO₃ films.     

Bi2S3量子点敏化TiO2纳米阵列结构的制备及光电性能

利用水热法制备一维TiO₂纳米棒阵列,并采用化学浴沉积法(CBD)结合自组装技术在TiO₂纳米棒上敏化Bi₂S₃量子点,形成TiO₂/Bi₂S₃复合纳米棒阵列。系统研究了复合结构的表面形貌、晶体结构、光学及光电性能。结果表明:在修饰有三氨丙基三乙氧基硅烷自组装单分子膜(APTS-SAMs)的TiO₂纳米棒表面形成一层致密的Bi₂S₃量子点敏化层,这一技术的关键是含-NH₂末端的APTS-SAMs可有效促进Bi₂S₃的异相成核作用;Bi₂S₃的沉积时间对复合结构的光吸收及光电响应性能有决定性的影响,薄膜的光电流随着沉积时间呈先增加后减小的趋势,在沉积时间为20min时,光电流密度最大。这是因为随着沉积时间的增加,TiO₂纳米棒表面Bi₂S₃量子点密度增大,光吸收增加;而当沉积时间进一步延长时,Bi₂S₃在TiO₂纳米棒表面的大量负载而形成堆积和团聚,导致表面缺陷增多,光生电子复合几率增大,从而使光电流密度减小。     

Sol-gel processing of lead-free (Na,K)NbO<Subscript>3</Subscript> ferroelectric films

The sol-gel processing of lead-free (Na,K) NbO₃ ferroelectric films was studied. Sodium ethoxide (NaOC₂H₅) and potassium ethoxide (KOC₂H₅) were prepared by reacting solid Na and K with ethanol (99.7%) in a solvent of 2-methoxyethanol. 0.5-μm-thick (Na,K)NbO₃ thin films with orthorhombic perovskite structure were obtained by pyrolyzing at 400°C and annealing at 800–900°C. The films had relatively dense and uniform microstructure with grain size of about 50 nm, whose ferroelectricity was proved by the P-E hysteresis loop measurement. It was found that excess K was effective to reduce the annealing temperature for the crystallization of sol-gel-derived (Na,K)NbO₃ thin films.     

Bi2S3量子点敏化TiO2纳米阵列结构的制备及光电性能研究

利用水热法制备一维TiO₂纳米棒阵列,并采用化学浴沉积法(CBD)结合自组装技术在TiO₂纳米棒上敏化Bi₂S₃量子点,形成TiO₂/Bi₂S₃复合纳米棒阵列.系统研究了复合结构的表面形貌、晶体结构、光学及光电性能.结果表明:在修饰有三氨丙基三乙氧基硅烷自组装单分子膜(APTS-SAMs)的TiO₂纳米棒表面形成一层致密的Bi₂S₃量子点敏化层,这一技术的关键是含-NH₂末端的APTS-SAMs可有效促进Bi₂S₃的异相成核作用;Bi₂S₃的沉积时间对复合结构的光吸收及光电响应性能有决定性的影响,薄膜的光电流随着沉积时间呈先增加后减小的趋势,在沉积时间为20 min时,光电流密度最大.这是因为随着沉积时间的增加,TiO₂纳米棒表面Bi₂S₃量子点密度增大,光吸收增加;而当沉积时间进一步延长时,Bi₂S₃在TiO₂纳米棒表面的大量负载而形成堆积和团聚,导致表面缺陷增多,光生电子复合几率增大,从而使光电流密度减小.     

The formation and physicochemical characterization of Al2O3-doped manganese ferrites

Mn/Fe mixed oxide solids doped with Al₂O₃ (0.32-1.27 wt.%) were prepared by impregnation of manganese nitrate with finely powdered ferric oxide, then treated with different amounts of aluminum nitrate. The obtained samples were calcined in air at 700-1000 °C for 6 h. The specific surface area (S_BET) and the catalytic activity of pure and doped precalcined at 700-1000 °C have been measured by using N₂ adsorption isotherms and CO oxidation by O₂. The structure and the phase changes were characterized by DTA and XRD techniques. The obtained results revealed that Mn₂O₃ interacted readily with Fe₂O₃ to produce well-crystallized manganese ferrite (MnFe₂O₄) at temperatures of 800 °C and above. The degree of propagation of this reaction increased by Al₂O₃-doping and also by increasing the heating temperature. The treatment with 1.27 wt.% Al₂O₃ followed by heating at 1000 °C resulted in complete conversion of Mn/Fe oxides into the corresponding ferrite phase. The catalytic activity and S_BET of pure and doped solids were found to decrease, by increasing both the calcination temperature and the amount of Al₂O₃ added, due to the enhanced formation of MnFe₂O₄ phase which is less reactive than the free oxides (Mn₂O₃ and Fe₂O₃). The activation energy of formation (ΔE) of MnFe₂O₄ was determined for pure and doped solids. The promotion effect of aluminum in formation of MnFe₂O₄ was attributed to an effective increase in the mobility of reacting cations.     

Improvement in Optoelectronic Properties of Bismuth Sulphide Thin Films by Chromium Incorporation at the Orthorhombic Crystal Lattice for Photovoltaic Applications

By using the chemical bath deposition approach, binary bismuth sulphides (Bi₂S₃) and chromium-doped ternary bismuth sulphides (Bi_2−xCr_xS₃) thin films were effectively produced, and their potential for photovoltaic applications was examined. Structural elucidation revealed that Bi₂S₃ deposited by this simple and cost-effective method retained its orthorhombic crystal lattice by doping up to 3 at.%. The morphological analysis confirmed the crack-free deposition, hence making them suitable for solar cell applications. Optical analysis showed that deposited thin films have a bandgap in the range of 1.30 to 1.17 eV, values of refractive index (n) from 2.9 to 1.3, and an extinction coefficient (k) from 1.03 to 0.3. From the Hall measurements, it followed that the dominant carriers in all doped and undoped samples are electrons, and the carrier density in doped samples is almost two orders of magnitude larger than in Bi₂S₃. Hence, this suggests that doping is an effective tool to improve the optoelectronic behavior of Bi₂S₃ thin films by engineering the compositional, structural, and morphological properties.     

Orientation and Surface Properties of Sol-Gel Derived Y2O3 Films

The orientation, surface and optical properties of sol-gel derived Y₂O₃ films have been investigated. Transparent Y₂O₃ films were prepared on quartz glass substrates by sol-gel processes using YCl₃·6H₂O as a starting material. The water droplet contact angles of the films reached constant values between 79° and 90° after the films were left for 8 to 10 days in air at ambient temperature, indicating that the film surface exhibited hydrophobicity. When 2-(2-methoxyethoxy)ethanol (MEE) was added to the sol, yttria in the films crystallized to a strongly oriented cubic phase at firing temperatures between 400°C and 500°C. The intensity of the XRD peaks increased as the firing temperature was increased to 900°C. However, yttria crystallized to a non-oriented cubic phase when MEE was not used. The refractive index and packing density of the Y₂O₃ films increased from 1.55 to 1.68 and from 0.67 to 0.79, respectively, as the firing temperature was raised from 400°C to 900°C, indicating that sol-gel derived Y₂O₃ films are lower in density than evaporated ones.     

Study of the optimal condition for electroplating of Bi2S3 thin films and their photoelectrochemical characteristics

Bismuth sulfide (Bi₂S₃) thin films were electrodeposited from non-aqueous dimethyl sulfoxide medium containing Bi(NO₃)₃ and thiourea as the precursor salts, triethanol amine as the complexing agent, and TritonX-100 as the surface active agent. The prepared films were subjected to rigorous experimentation in order to validate their potential candidature for solar cells. The films exhibited band gap energy of ∼1.3 eV and resistivity of the order of 2 × 10⁶ Ω cm at room temperature as was obtained from UV–Vis spectroscopy and four-probe measurements, respectively. Scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and energy dispersive analysis of X-ray were employed to reveal the morphology, structure, and chemical composition of the film matrix. The Bi₂S₃ films were found to be non-decomposable up to the temperature of 1,000 °C with the help of thermogravimetry–differential thermal analysis. The Nyquist and Mott–Schottky plots derived from electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements provided important information regarding electrical and semiconducting properties of the films. The n-type film with a donor density of the order of ∼10²³ m⁻³ displayed reasonable photoactivity under illumination and is recommended as a promising candidate for potential photoelectrochemical applications.     

Fabrication and properties of xBiFeO3-(1 − x)Bi4Ti3O12 system by sol–gel process

The thin films of mixture of xBiFeO₃-(1 − x)Bi₄Ti₃O₁₂ (x = 0.4, 0.5, and 0.6) system were prepared by a sol–gel process. The thicknesses of the thin films were 540, 500, and 570 nm, respectively. The crystal structure of all thin films annealed at 650 °C was analyzed by X-ray diffraction. It was found that the thin films at x = 0.4 and 0.5 mainly consisted of a Bi₄Ti₃O₁₂ phase while Bi₅Ti₃FeO₁₅ was the major phase of the thin film at x = 0.6. The thin film (x = 0.6) showed better ferroelectric properties in remnant polarization and polarization fatigue than those observed in the thin films (x = 0.4 and 0.5). The values of remnant polarization 2P _r and coercive field 2E c of the thin film at x = 0.6 were 36 μC/cm² and 192 kV/cm at an applied electric field of 260 kV/cm, respectively. There was almost no polarization fatigue up to 10¹⁰ switching cycles. Also weak ferromagnetism was observed in the thin film at x = 0.6.     

Preparation and photocatalytic activity of Sb2S3/Bi2S3 doped TiO2 from complex precursor via gel-hydrothermal treatment

Sb₂S₃/Bi₂S₃ doped TiO₂ were prepared with the coordination compounds [M(S₂CNEt)₃] (M=Sb, Bi; S₂CNEt=pyrrolidinedithiocarbamate) as precursors via gel-hydrothermal techniques. The doped TiO₂ were characterized by XRD, SEM, XPS and UV-vis diffuse reflectance means. The photocatalyst based on doped TiO₂ for photodecolorization of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) was examined. The optimal Bi₂S₃/Sb₂S₃ content, pH and different doped techniques have been investigated. Photocatalytic tests reveal that M₂S₃ doped TiO₂ via the gel-hydrothermal route performs better photocatalytic activity for photodegradation reaction of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP).     

稀土离子Tm3+掺杂Bi2WO6的可见光催化性能

以Na₂WO₄·2H₂O和Bi（NO₃）₃·5H₂O为主要原料,采用水热法合成了稀土离子Tm³⁺掺杂的Bi₂WO₆光催化剂。采用XRD、SEM、TEM、Raman、PL、DRS研究了Tm³⁺掺杂Bi₂WO₆的物相,微观形貌和可见光催化性能。结果表明,Tm³⁺掺杂有效提高了Bi₂WO₆的光催化性能,当掺杂量为6%时,样品的光催化性能最好,可见光照射30 min后,对罗丹明B的降解效率达到91.27%,而可见光照射5 h后,对焦糖色素的降解效率达45.25%。与未掺杂Bi₂WO₆相比,分别提高了27.78%和35.22%。     

Br-掺杂Bi2WO6的水热法合成及其可见光催化性能

以Bi（NO₃）₃·5H₂O和Na₂WO₄·2H₂O为主要原料,采用水热法合成了纯相Bi₂WO₆,并对其进行非金属离子Br^-掺杂改性。采用XRD、SEM、TEM、XPS、Raman、PL和DRS研究了Br^-掺杂对Bi₂WO₆的物相结构、形貌和可见光催化性能的影响。结果表明,Br^-掺杂可有效提高Bi₂WO₆的可见光催化性能,当掺杂量（物质的量百分数）为8%时,溴掺杂Bi₂WO₆的光催化性能最好,可见光照射40 min后,可降解96.73%的罗丹明-B,与未掺杂Bi₂WO₆相比,其降解率提高了36.32%。     

Br~-掺杂Bi_2WO_6的水热法合成及其可见光催化性能

以Bi(NO_3)_3·5H_2O和Na_2WO_4·2H_2O为主要原料,采用水热法合成了纯相Bi_2WO_6,并对其进行非金属离子Br-掺杂改性。采用XRD、SEM、TEM、XPS、Raman、PL和DRS研究了Br~-掺杂对Bi_2WO_6的物相结构、形貌和可见光催化性能的影响。结果表明,Br-掺杂可有效提高Bi_2WO_6的可见光催化性能,当掺杂量(物质的量百分数)为8%时,溴掺杂Bi_2WO_6的光催化性能最好,可见光照射40 min后,可降解96.73%的罗丹明-B,与未掺杂Bi_2WO_6相比,其降解率提高了36.32%。     

Sol-gel synthesis of nanocomposite materials based on lithium niobate nanocrystals dispersed in a silica glass matrix

With the final goal to obtain thin films containing stoichiometric lithium niobate nanocrystals embedded in an amorphous silica matrix, the synthesis strategy used to set a new inexpensive sol-gel route to prepare nanocomposite materials in the Li₂O-Nb₂O₅-SiO₂ system is reported. In this route, LiNO₃, NbCl₅ and Si(OC₂H₅)₄ were used as starting materials. The gels were annealed at different temperatures and nanocrystals of several phases were formed. Futhermore, by controlling the gel compositions and the synthesis parameters, it was possible to obtain LiNbO₃ as only crystallizing phase. LiNbO₃-SiO₂ nanocomposite thin films on Si-SiO₂ and Al₂O₃ substrates were grown. The LiNbO₃ average size, increasing with the annealing temperature, was 27 nm for a film of composition 10Li₂O-10Nb₂O₅-80SiO₂ heated 2 h at 800 °C. Electrical investigation revealed that the nanocrystals size strongly affects the film conductivity and the occurrence of hysteretic current-voltage curves.     

稀土离子Tm3+掺杂Bi2WO6的可见光催化性能

以Na_2WO_4·2H_2O和Bi(NO_3)_3·5H_2O为主要原料,采用水热法合成了稀土离子Tm~(3+)掺杂的Bi_2WO_6光催化剂。采用XRD、SEM、TEM、Raman、PL、DRS研究了Tm~(3+)掺杂Bi_2WO_6的物相,微观形貌和可见光催化性能。结果表明,Tm~(3+)掺杂有效提高了Bi_2WO_6的光催化性能,当掺杂量为6%时,样品的光催化性能最好,可见光照射30 min后,对罗丹明B的降解效率达到91.27%,而可见光照射5 h后,对焦糖色素的降解效率达45.25%。与未掺杂Bi_2WO_6相比,分别提高了27.78%和35.22%。     

Crystal chemistry and crystallography of the Aurivillius phase Bi5AgNb4O18

Bi₅AgNb₄O₁₈ is a new phase, which was discovered during the phase equilibrium study of the Bi₂O₃-Ag₂O-Nb₂O₅ system. Bi₅AgNb₄O₁₈ was prepared at 750°C and is stable in air up to its melting temperature of 1160.1±5.0°C (standard error of estimate). Results of a Rietveld refinement using neutron powder diffraction confirmed that Bi₅AgNb₄O₁₈ is isostructural with Bi₃TiNbO₉, Bi₅NaNb₄O₁₈, and Bi₅KNb₄O₁₈. The structure was refined in the orthorhombic space group A2₁am, Z=2, and the lattice parameters are a=5.4915(2) Å, b=5.4752(2) Å, c=24.9282(8) Å, and V=749.52(4) Å³. The structure can be described as the m=2 member of the Aurivillius family, (Bi₂O₂)²⁺ (A_m−1B_mO_3m+1)²⁻ (where A=Bi and B=Ag, Nb), which is characterized by perovskite-like (A_m−1B_mO_3m+1)²⁻ slabs regularly interleaved with (Bi₂O₂)²⁺ layers. The octahedral [NbO₆] units are distorted with Nb-O distances ranging from 1.856(4) to 2.161(2) Å and the O-Nb-O angles ranging from 82.6(3)° to 98.5(3)°. These octahedra are tilted about the a- and c-axis by about 10.3° and 12.4°, respectively. Ag was found to substitute exclusively into the Bi-site that is located in the layer between the two distorted [NbO₆] units. Although the Ag substitutes into the Bi-site with the Bi:Ag ratio of 1:1, the existence of a superlattice was not detected using electron diffraction. A comparison of (Bi₂O₂)²⁺(A_m−1Nb_mO_3m+1)²⁻ structures (where A=Ag, Na, and K) revealed a relation between the pervoskite tolerance factor, t, and structural distortion. The reference pattern for Bi₅AgNb₄O₁₈ has been submitted to the International Centre for Diffraction Data (ICDD) for inclusion in the Powder Diffraction File.     

Preparation and Characterization of SiO2-MxOy(M = V, Sn, Sb) Thin Films from Silicic Acid and Metal Chlorides

The preparation of SiO₂-M _x O _y (M = V, Sn, Sb) binary oxide thin films by sol-gel method was investigated. The reaction of silicic acid with metal chloride (M = Sn and Sb) or oxychloride (M = V) formed homogeneous solutions. The dip-coating of slide glass and silicon wafer followed by heat treatment gave oxide films having Si—O—M bond. The changes of FT-IR spectra as a function of heat treatment temperature and molar composition confirmed the Si—O—M bonds. The sheet resistance of films increased with an increase on heat treatment temperature and decrease in the content of metal oxide M _x O _y . X-ray diffraction peaks were observed for the SiO₂-V₂O₅ films with high V₂O₅ contents and heat-treated above 250°C, while the others were amorphous. Oxide films heat treated at 500°C had a thickness between 340–470 nm.