Abstract
We propose a novel derived optical model fitted to the experimental transmittance of PVC-PS hybrid thin films doped with Silica nanoparticles. The films are synthesized using a simple dip-coating method. The model has successfully interpreted the experimental spectral behaviour of transmittance of amorphous semiconductors and dielectric thin films. Interestingly, our model reproduces the optical parameters of the investigated thin films in good agreement with those predicted by Tauc plot. The great advantage of the proposed model over other models lies in its ability to explain the correlations between the film thickness and the optical bandgap. Furthermore, we investigate the structural, physical, and optical properties of PVC-PS- SiO2 thin films, in relevance to the silica percentage content. XRD measurements show that the as-prepared polymeric thin films are amorphous. In addition, SEM micrographs indicate that silica nanoparticles are well dispersed on the surface of the PVC-PS thin films with an average diameter of 100–400 nm. The effect of annealing parameters is also investigated to optimize the projected water contact angle of PVC-PS- SiO2 thin films. At annealing temperature of 2000°C, films become hydrophobic. The transmittance T% of the PVC-PS thin films is found to be about 83% in the visible region. The T% enhances to 90% upon adding silica NPs into PVC-PS polymeric thin films. Obtaining coatings with high transmittance is of crucial importance for several optoelectronic and photonic applications.
Highlights
The organic-inorganic hybrid optical materials are of great technological values
As the doping level of SiO2 NPs incorporated into PVC-PS polymeric matrix is increased, k is further decreased demonstrating that PVC-PS-silica nanocomposite thin films display no energy loss due to absorption and/or scattering
SEM micrographs indicate that the morphology of the surfaces of as prepared thin films depends on the level of concentration of silica nanoparticles with an average particle size (100–400) nm
Summary
The organic-inorganic hybrid optical materials are of great technological values. The elucidation between the properties of inorganic elements and polymer matrices may lead to hybrid compositions of astonishing properties. Polymer composites exhibits various interesting optical properties, such as high/low refractive index, tailored absorption/emission spectra and strong optical nonlinearities. Such rare properties make hybrids eligible for potential optoelectronic applications [3, 4]. Silica-based inorganic–organic hybrids synthesized using sol-gel technique are being eminently employed in several technological applications at moderate temperature and pressure [7, 8, 9, 10]. PVC polymer is one of the most multipurpose and multifunctional material worldwide They have been used in the form of composites, blends and copolymers to outfit a diversity of tenders including flexible electronics [12, 13, 14, 15]. We compare the refractive indices of the prepared PVC-PS-SiO2 nanocomposite thin films obtained using the newly derived model with Sellmeier oscillator model
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