Abstract
This study explores the co-deposition of thin polymeric films loaded with nanoparticles for its possible future application as radiation detectors. Thin films containing zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles in plasma polymerized n-hexane (PPH) were deposited on silicon substrates using an atmospheric pressure plasma jet (APPJ). Crystalline ZnO nanoparticles were produced by wet chemistry, characterized, and injected through the plasma with an aerosol buffer. The precursor hydrocarbon was polymerized in atmosphere at room temperature by the plasma, resulting in a highly crosslinked structure chemically stable against common solvents. The polymer structure was characterized by FT-IR, NMR, and thermal analyses. Photoluminescence analysis revealed that ZnO UV excitonic emission is recovered owing to the passivation through polymeric encapsulation, with a remarkable increase in luminescence yield.
Highlights
Atmospheric pressure plasma jets (APPJ) offers the possibility to realize coatings and surface functionalization with application fields extending from biomedical sensors to optoelectronic devices, without the need of expensive vacuum apparatuses and with the advantage to work in open atmosphere [1,2,3]
Concerning the deposition of zinc oxide (ZnO) composite films, a few works reported on the use of aerosol deposition mainly in dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) systems with helium as a process gas and the ZnO particles directly suspended in the matrix liquid precursor, such as n-octane and 1,7-octadiene [46,47]
We present a preliminary work on the co-deposition, through atmospheric pressure plasma jet (APPJ) technique, of polymeric thin films with ZnO nanoparticles
Summary
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Atmospheric pressure plasma jets (APPJ) offers the possibility to realize coatings and surface functionalization with application fields extending from biomedical sensors to optoelectronic devices, without the need of expensive vacuum apparatuses and with the advantage to work in open atmosphere [1,2,3] It allows for the deposition of thin films with controlled thickness, good filler dispersion homogeneity and tunable chemistry. Concerning the deposition of ZnO composite films, a few works reported on the use of aerosol deposition mainly in dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) systems with helium as a process gas and the ZnO particles directly suspended in the matrix liquid precursor, such as n-octane and 1,7-octadiene [46,47] This solution allows the simultaneous goal of obtaining superhydrophobic coatings and a high density of nanoparticles, the grown structure is porous and fragile. Static and time-resolved photoluminescence (PL) measurements were performed highlighting the quenching of the visible band of the ZnO in the coating, highlighting their promising implementation in detectors development
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