Band gap coupling in photocatalytic activity in ZnO–TiO2 thin films

Abstract

Zinc oxide and titanium dioxide composite thin films were prepared on Corning 7059 glass substrates by co-sputtering. The reactive gas-surroundings used was ultrahigh purity oxygen. To analyze the structural, optical and photocatalytic properties of the ZnO–TiO2 samples, X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), optical absorption, Raman spectroscopy and methylene blue bleaching were carried out at room temperature. XRD patterns indicate the presence of TiO2 (anatase and rutile phases), ZnO, ZnTiO3, and Zn2TiO4 crystalline structures. AFM images allow the observation of non-homogeneous surface in the ZnO–TiO2 system, suggesting the separation of different crystalline phases in the composite. Raman studies exhibit different spectra in the films depending on the area analyzed, which can be interpreted as a result of the existence of well separated crystalline regions as seen in AFM images. The photocatalytic activity (PA) of TiO2–ZnO–ZnTiO3–Zn2TiO4 composite, as expected for adequate coupling semiconductors, is larger than PA of ZnO and TiO2 oxides, used as references. A simple proposal about the probable alignment of the conduction band, the valence band, and the Fermi level is included.