Hybrid polymer nanosystems based on selenium and zinc-selenide nanoparticles: Morphology, electronic structure, and thermodynamic properties

Abstract

The structure and morphology of hybrid nanosystems based on selenium and zinc-selenide nano-particles stabilized by water-soluble polymers—polyvinylpyrrolidone and polymethacrylic acid, are studied by methods of atomic force microscopy (AFM), high-resolution electron microscopy, transmission and scanning electron microscopy (TEM and SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X-ray structural analysis, and static light scattering. Comparison of the size characteristics of the nanostructures in the nanoparticle/polymer systems upon an increase in the weight ratio (ν) of the system components, using static light scattering in a solution and AFM, SEM, and TEM on the substrate surface, shows that the sizes of the forming nano-structures change nonmonotonically. The thermodynamic characteristics of the nanostructures in the solution are determined. It is shown that depending on ν, nanostructures of various morphologies may be formed, including spheres and irregularly shaped micelles with cores of different sizes.