Effect of Mg Doping on the Physical Properties of Fe2O3 Thin Films for Photocatalytic Devices

Nanomaterials

Ruxandra Vidu¹  Mejda Ajili²  Rihab Ben Ayed²  Najoua Kamoun Turki²  Salah Kouass³  José Rivas⁴  Yolanda Piñeiro⁴  Badriyah Alhalaili⁵ 

[1] Faculty of Materials Science and Engineering, University Politehnica of Bucharest, 060042 Bucharest, Romania;LR99ES13 Laboratoire de Physique de la Matière Condensée (LPMC), Département de Physique, Faculté des Sciences de Tunis, Université Tunis El Manar, Tunis 2092, Tunisia;Laboratoire des Matériaux Utiles, INRAP, Technopôle, Sidi-Thabet, Tunis 2020, Tunisia;Nanomag Laboratory, Applied Physics Department, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, 15782 Santiago de Compostela, Spain;Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials Program, Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research, P.O. Box 24885, Safat 13109, Kuwait;

关键词: thin films;    iron oxide;    Mg doping;    physical properties;    photocatalysis;   

DOI  :  10.3390/nano12071179

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Undoped and Mg-doped (y = [Mg²⁺]/[Fe³⁺] = 1, 2, 3, and 4 at.%) Fe₂O₃ thin films were synthesized by a simple spray pyrolysis technique. The thin films were extensively characterized. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) analysis confirmed the successful insertion of Mg in the rhombohedral structure of Fe₂O₃. In addition, scanning electronic microscope (SEM) and confocal microscope (CM) images showed a homogenous texture of the film, which was free of defects. The rough surface of the film obtained by spray pyrolysis is an important feature for photocatalysis and gas sensor applications. The direct band gap of the doped Fe₂O₃ films obtained for [Mg²⁺]/[Fe³⁺] = 3 at.% was E_dir = 2.20 eV, which recommends the Mg-doped iron oxide as an optical window or buffer layer in solar cell devices. The photodegradation performance of Mg-doped Fe₂O₃ was assessed by studying the removal of methylene blue (MB) under sunlight irradiation, with an effective removal efficiency of 90% within 180 min. The excellent photodegradation activity was attributed to the strong absorption of Mg-doped Fe₂O₃ in the UV and most of the visible light, and to the effective separation of photogenerated charge carriers.

【 授权许可】

Unknown