Cu-Doped SnO₂ Nanoparticles: Synthesis and Properties

In this work, a simple, co-precipitation technique was used to prepare un-doped, pure tin oxide (SnO₂). As synthesized SnO₂ nanoparticles were doped with Cu₂₊ ions. Detailed characterization was carried out to observe the crystalline phase, morphological features and chemical constituents with opto-electrical and magnetic properties of the synthesized nanoparticles (NPs). X-ray diffraction analysis showed the existence of crystalline, tetragonal structure of SnO₂. Both the sample synthesized here showed different crystalline morphology. The band gap energy (E_g) of the synthesized sample was estimated and it was found to decrease from 3.60 to 3.26 eV. The band gap energy reduced due to increase in Cu₂₊ dopant amount inside the SnO₂ lattice. Optical properties were analyzed using absorption spectra and Photoluminescence (PL) spectra. It was observed that Cu₂₊ ions incorporated SnO₂ NPs exhibited more degradation efficiencies for Rhodamine B (RhB) dye compared to un-doped sample under UV-Visible irradiation. The dielectric characteristics of un-doped, pure and Cu₂₊ incorporated SnO₂ nanoparticles were studied at different frequency region under different temperatures. The ac conductivity and impedance analysis of pure and Cu₂₊ incorporated SnO₂ nanoparticles was also studied. The magnetic properties of the synthesized samples were analysed. Both the sample showed ferromagnetic properties. The research indicated that the Cu₂₊ ions doping can make the sample a promising candidate for using in the field of optoelectronics, magneto electronics, and microwave devices.