Abstract
Copper oxide (CuO) films were deposited onto glass substrates by the microwave assisted chemical bath deposition method, and varying the pH of the solution. The pH range was varied from 11.0 to 13.5, and the effects on the film properties were studied. An analytical study of the precursor solution was proposed to describe and understand the chemical reaction mechanisms that take place in the chemical bath at certain pH to produce the CuO film. A series of experiments were performed by varying the parameters of the analytical model from which the CuO films were obtained. The crystalline structure of the CuO films was studied using X-ray diffraction, while the surface morphology, chemical composition, and optical band-gap energy were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and UV–Vis spectrophotometry, respectively. The CuO films obtained exhibited a monoclinic crystalline phase, nanostructured surface morphology, stoichiometric Cu/O ratio of 50/50 at%, and band-gap energy value of 1.2 eV.
Highlights
Metal oxide nanostructured materials are of particular interest for the development of novel functional and smart materials
CuO film deposition by chemical bath deposition (CBD) needs a metal salt as a copper source and a complexing agent; copper nitrate, sulfate, chloride, and acetate are frequently used as a metal source, while aqueous ammonia, sodium hydroxide, and ammonium persulfate are used as complexing agents [9,10,11]
The aim of this work was to investigate the influence of the starting reaction conditions on the physical and chemical properties of CuO nanostructures synthesized by microwave chemical bath deposition (MWCBD) when the pH in the aqueous solution is varied
Summary
Metal oxide nanostructured materials are of particular interest for the development of novel functional and smart materials. The CBD growing mechanisms responsible for the CuO nanostructure formation have not been clearly elucidated; the chemical reagent effects have been studied. S.K. Shinde et al [7] reported the effect of different ionic liquid solvents on the properties of CuO thin films; the chemical precursors in the bath were copper sulfate as the copper source and aqueous ammonia as the complexing agent, while monoclinic phase of CuO and nanosheet-like and hybrid nanostructures of the surface morphology were obtained on the CuO films for supercapacitor applications. J. Sultana et al [8] reported an interesting growth kinetic of CuO thin films; copper chloride and aqueous ammonia were used in the bath. A chemical route for depositing the CuO film is explained; the CBD growing mechanism is not completely clear and only is explained through the aqueous intermediate Cu(OH) species. An accurate detection of precursors, the development of morphology formation, and development of analytical models for explaining the growing mechanism processes are required
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