Solvothermal synthesis and characterisation of doped TiO2 nanocrystals for light scattering applications

Abstract

Mesoporous nanoparticles have a larger surface area and therefore, suitable for dye-sensitised solar cells and photocatalytic applications. This Letter presents the analysis of solvothermal derived as-prepared TiO2 and doped TiO2 nanocrystals by utilising acetone as the solvent. The as-prepared and doped TiO2 nanoparticles endorsed the presence of anatase phase along with the slightly deviated diffraction peaks with the reduced crystallite size as a result of doping. Surface morphology analyses evidenced the mesoporous microspheres of nanoparticles, whereas the stoichiometry study exhibited the elementary peaks in the as-prepared and doped samples. The estimated optical bandgaps are found to be 2.68, 2.92, 2.48 and 2.88 eV in accordance with the doped TiO2 with copper, tin, barium and zinc-magnesium as compared to 3.16 eV of TiO2. Doped samples evidenced the enhanced scattering capability, whereas tin and zinc-magnesium co-doped samples demonstrated the highest diffuse reflectance in a broad wavelength range from 550 to 800 nm.