Structural, optical and electrical properties of Cd doped CuO nanoparticles obtained by simple sol gel method

Abstract

Study of doped nanoparticles attracts more attention by many researchers due to its significant properties. In the present work different percentage of cadmium (Cd) doped copper oxide (CuO) nanoparticles were prepared using cost effective and simple Sol gel method. The structure, optical, morphology and I-V (current–voltage) properties of the synthesized nanoparticles were investigated. X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies of the synthesized sample reveal the monoclinic structure of CuO nanoparticles. UV–vis spectroscopy revealed that after doping, the absorption increased and the band gap energy decreased in the range 3.85–3.80 eV. The FTIR spectra show the presence of chemical bonding and functional groups at the CuO nanoparticles interface. I-V characterization revealed that the maximum conductivity value of the Cd (3%) doped CuO nanoparticles was 7.4x10-9 S/cm. Using J-V, the diode parameters of different weight percentage of the Cd doped CuO nano particles were measured in dark and under illumination. In the dark, the ideality factor (n) and barrier height () of Cd (3%) doped CuO nanoparticles are 17.52 and 0.90 eV, respectively and in the light, they are 8.6 and 0.92 eV.