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Effect of TiCl4 treatment time on the properties of anatase TiO2 thin films synthesized by spray pyrolysis technique

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Abstract

In this study, three titanium dioxide (TiO2) samples were prepared on FTO substrate through the process of spray pyrolysis at 280 °C and the influence of TiCl4 treatment on their electrochemical properties was studied. The synthesized films were studied to understand their structure, surface morphologies, optical, and electrochemical characteristics through the use of X-ray diffractometry, atomic force microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, Ultraviolet–Visible spectrophotometry, Photoluminescence, and electrochemical techniques. The anatase phase was revealed from the XRD and Raman spectra with the most prominent peak observed at the (004) plane. Porous films with an average surface roughness of 36.95 nm were obtained from the morphology study. Optical studies recorded increased transmittance values with band gap energy that ranged from 2.71 to 2.76 eV. Increased carrier mobility with improved charge storage feature was also observed from the plots. The synthesized films find potential application in solar cells and supercapacitors.

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The authors declare that there is no associated data and all data supporting the findings of this study are available within the article.

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Acknowledgements

We acknowledge the support by TETFUND under contract number: TETFUND/DR& D/CE/UNI/NSUKKA/RP/VOL.1. FIE acknowledges the support received from the Africa Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Power and Energy Development (ACE-SPED), University of Nigeria, Nsukka.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Nano Laboratory, Semnan Science and Technology Park Semnan, Shahrood, Iran

    M. Mahdi Shahidi & T. Hoda Enayati

  2. Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Enugu, Nigeria

    Agnes C. Nkele, Ugochi K. Chime & Fabian I. Ezema

  3. Nanosciences African Network (NANOAFNET), iThemba LABS-National Research Foundation, P.O. Box 722, Somerset West, Western Cape Province, South Africa

    Fabian I. Ezema

  4. College of Graduate Studies, UNESCO-UNISA Africa Chair in Nanosciences/Nanotechnology, University of South Africa (UNISA), P.O. Box 392, Pretoria, South Africa

    Fabian I. Ezema

  5. Africa Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Power and Energy Development (ACE-SPED), University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria

    Fabian I. Ezema

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  1. M. Mahdi Shahidi
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  2. T. Hoda Enayati
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  3. Agnes C. Nkele
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  4. Ugochi K. Chime
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Contributions

M.M.S.: Conceptualization. H.E.T.: Experimentation. A.C.N.: Writing of manuscript. U.K.C.: Revision of manuscript. F.I.E.: Supervision.

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Correspondence to Ugochi K. Chime or Fabian I. Ezema.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Recent Advances of Advanced Functional Materials for Optics, Lasers and Photovoltaics Applications, Guest edited by Oksana Krupka, Anna Zawadzka, Hassane Erguig, Alexander Quant and Bouchta Sahraoui.

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Shahidi, M.M., Enayati, T.H., Nkele, A.C. et al. Effect of TiCl4 treatment time on the properties of anatase TiO2 thin films synthesized by spray pyrolysis technique. Opt Quant Electron 55, 347 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11082-022-04483-0

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