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Effect of an alkali hydroxide concentration on the structural, optical, and surface morphological properties of ZnO nanoparticles

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Abstract

A comprehensive study aimed to investigate the role of sodium hydroxide precursor concentration on the physical properties of the ZnO nanoparticles. A simple wet chemical approach was employed to synthesize ZnO nanoparticles by keeping the Zn precursor concentration constant and sodium hydroxide concentration varied. XRD analysis confirms the prepared ZnO nanoparticles having a hexagonal wurtzite phase whose crystallite sizes are from 24 to 34 nm. Good crystalline ZnO nanoparticles are realized when the Zn-to-OH precursor concentration is greater than 1:1 molar ratio. UV–Vis spectroscopic studies reveal the optical bandgap of the ZnO nanoparticles can be tailored considerably by varying the alkali hydroxide concentration. The variation in Urbach energy values emphasizes the existence of localized states originating from the lattice disorder and defects. The room temperature photoluminescence analysis confirms the presence of defects in the prepared nanoparticles. Surface morphological investigation of the synthesized nanoparticle samples was investigated using SEM.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physics, Rajah Serfoji Government College (Autonomous) [Affiliated to Bharathidasan University], Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, 613 005, India

    S. Nilavazhagan, D. Anbuselvan, A. Santhanam & N. Chidhambaram

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  1. S. Nilavazhagan
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  2. D. Anbuselvan
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  3. A. Santhanam
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Correspondence to N. Chidhambaram.

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Nilavazhagan, S., Anbuselvan, D., Santhanam, A. et al. Effect of an alkali hydroxide concentration on the structural, optical, and surface morphological properties of ZnO nanoparticles. Appl. Phys. A 126, 279 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-020-3462-3

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