Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Effect of Yttrium Substitution on Microstructural, Optical, and Photocatalytic Properties of ZnO Nanostructures

  • Published:
Journal of Electronic Materials Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Zinc oxide (ZnO) nano-powder has been successfully doped, via a solid-state reaction, with different concentrations of yttrium (Y) rare-earth element. The thermal stability of the prepared nanostructures has been studied by thermogravimetric and differential thermal analysis. The results show that Y-doped ZnO nanostructures are thermally stable for temperatures higher than 444°C. Structural, microstructural, optical, and photocatalytic characterizations have been performed. The micro-strain properties were analyzed through the Williamson–Hall analysis. We have identified a pure phase wurtzite material, without any impurities. XRD peaks exhibited a shift toward the lower angles after doping, confirming the Y3+ substitution in the ZnO crystal structure. In accordance with the XRD analysis, morphological surface analysis done by scanning and transmission electron microscope indicates that, with increasing the concentration of the Y3+ ions inside the ZnO matrix, the grain size also increases. Fourier-transform infrared spectra showed that the various bonds were created without any contamination after substitution. Ultraviolet–visible–near-infrared spectroscopic measurements revealed a red-shift of the bandgap energy of 0.1 eV, confirming the success of the substitution process. To assess the photocatalytic activity, the photodegradation of methylene blue was studied. It was observed that the Y-dopant significantly improves the photocatalytic activity of the ZnO nanostructures. Bandgap narrowing by Y doping could be responsible for the improvement of the observed photocatalytic efficiency.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. R. Saleh, N.F. Djaja, and S.P. Prakoso, J. Alloys Compd. 546, 48 (2013).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. X.-C. Liu, E.-W. Shi, Z.-Z. Chen, H.-W. Zhang, L.-X. Song, H. Wang, and S.-D. Yao, J. Cryst. Growth 296, 135 (2006).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. S. Heinonen, J.-P. Nikkanen, E. Huttunen-Saarivirta, and E. Levänen, Thin Solid Films 638, 410 (2017).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. S.K. Sharma and D.Y. Kim, J. Mater. Sci. Technol. 32, 12 (2016).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. K. Chung, C.-H. Lee, and G.-C. Yi, Science 330, 655 (2010).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. C.J. Hu, Y.H. Lin, C.W. Tang, M.Y. Tsai, W.K. Hsu, and H.F. Kuo, Adv. Mater. 23, 2941 (2011).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. A. Eslami, S. Nasseri, B. Yadollahi, A. Mesdaghinia, F. Vaezi, R. Nabizadeh, and S. Nazmara, J. Chem. Technol. Biotechnol. 83, 1447 (2008).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. R.P. Davies, S.J. Pearton, D.P. Norton, M.P. Ivill, and F. Ren, Chem. Eng. Commun. 196, 1030 (2009).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. H. Zeng, G. Duan, Y. Li, S. Yang, X. Xu, and W. Cai, Adv. Funct. Mater. 20, 561 (2010).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. S. Heo, S.K. Sharma, H. Lee, S. Lee, B. Lee, Y. Lee, D.Y. Kim, and C. Kim, Thin Solid Films 558, 27 (2014).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. A.I. Bush, J.-Y. Koh, and C.J. Frederickson, Nat. Rev. Neurosci. 6, 449 (2005).

    Google Scholar 

  12. K. Mirabbaszadeh, M. Ahmadi, M. Khosravi, R. Mokhtari, and S. Salari, J. Inorg. Organomet. Polym Mater. 23, 1219 (2013).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. V. Bornand, Thin Solid Films 574, 152 (2015).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. P. Manzhi, R. Kumari, M.B. Alam, G.R. Umapathy, R. Krishna, S. Ojha, R. Srivastava, and O.P. Sinha, Vacuum 166, 370 (2019).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. R. Udayabhaskar, R.V. Mangalaraja, and B. Karthikeyan, J. Mater. Sci.: Mater. Electron. 24, 3183 (2013).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. C.-L. Hsu, Y.-D. Gao, Y.-S. Chen, and T.-J. Hsueh, Sens. Actuator B 192, 550 (2014).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. L. Liu, Z. Liu, Y. Yang, M. Genga, Y. Zou, M.B. Shahzad, Y. Dai, and Y. Qi, Ceram. Int. 44, 19998 (2018).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. F. Giovannelli, C. Chen, P. Díaz-Chao, E. Guilmeau, and F. Delorme, J. Eur. Ceram. Soc. 38, 5015 (2018).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. R. Dhahri, M. Hjiri, L. El Mir, A. Bonavita, D. Iannazzo, S.G. Leonardi, and G. Neri, Appl. Surf. Sci. 355, 1321 (2015).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. R. Zamiri, A.F. Lemos, A. Reblo, H.A. Ahangar, and J.M.F. Ferreira, Ceram. Int. 40, 523 (2014).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  21. Y. Zong, Z. Li, X. Wang, J. Ma, and Y. Men, Ceram. Int. 40, 10375 (2014).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  22. L. Luo, L. Gong, Y. Liu, J. Chen, C. Ding, X. Tang, X. Li, Z. Qiu, H. Wang, and X. Chen, Opt. Mater. 32, 1066 (2010).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Y.H. Yang, H.G. Zhu, H.M. Dong, and G.W. Yang, Mater. Lett. 124, 32 (2014).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. A. Urbieta, R. del Campo, R. Pérez, P. Fernández, and J. Piqueras, J. Alloy. Compd. 610, 416 (2014).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. M. Cun-Xing, Z. Zhan-Xia, Z. Lei, and M. Zhong-Quan, Appl. Surf. Sci. 256, 3174 (2010).

    Google Scholar 

  26. R. Sharma, K. Sehrawat, and R.M. Mehra, Curr. Appl. Phys. 10, 164 (2010).

    Google Scholar 

  27. N. Üzar, Appl. Phys. A 124, 1 (2018).

    Google Scholar 

  28. J.N. Huiberts, R. Griessen, J.H. Rector, R.J. Wijngaarden, J.P. Dekker, D.G. De Groot, and N.J. Koeman, Nature 380, 231 (1996).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. J. Hu, J. He, W. Long, and J. Liu, J. Am. Ceram. Soc. 93, 2155 (2010).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  30. C.-W. Nahm and C.-H. Park, J. Mater. Sci. 35, 3037 (2000).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  31. Z.Z. Öztürk and A. Altındal, J. Alloy. Compd. 536, 138 (2012).

    Google Scholar 

  32. T.L. Alford, R.N.P. Vemuri, and S. Das, Thin Solid Films 527, 92 (2013).

    Google Scholar 

  33. T. Alford and S. Das, RSC Adv. 5, 45586 (2015).

    Google Scholar 

  34. C.J. Tun, J.K. Sheu, C.-L. Yeh, C.H. Kuo, L.-C. Peng, W.C. Lai, and P.H. Chen, IEEE Trans. Electron Devices 57, 134 (2010).

    Google Scholar 

  35. U.G. Akpan and B.H. Hameed, Appl. Catal. A Gen. 375, 1 (2010).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  36. N. Kaur, S.K. Sharma, and D. Young Kim, Curr. Appl. Phys. 16, 231 (2016).

    Google Scholar 

  37. N. Liu, X. Chen, J. Zhang, and J.W. Schwank, Catal. Today 225, 34 (2014).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  38. C. Zhang, M. Shang, M. Liu, T. Zhang, L. Ge, H. Yuan, and S. Feng, J. Alloy. Compd. 665, 152 (2016).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  39. H.-Y. Liu, Z.-B. Feng, J. Wang, J.-Y. Diao, and D.-S. Su, Carbon 31, 87 (2016).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  40. A.L. Al-Otaibi, T. Ghrib, M. Alqahtani, M.A. Alharbi, R. Hamdi, and I. Massoudi, S Chem. Phys. 525, 110 (2019).

    Google Scholar 

  41. S. Chawla, K. Jayanthi, H. Chander, D. Haranath, S.K. Halder, and M. Kar, J. Alloy. Compd. 459, 457 (2008).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  42. A.W. Coats and J.P. Redfern, Analyst 88, 906 (1963).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  43. P.P. Pal and J. Manam, Radiat. Phys. Chem. 88, 7 (2013).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  44. S. Yang, D. Zhu, and J. Mater, Sci.-Mater. Electron. 29, 3104 (2018).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  45. M.F. Khan, A.H. Ansari, M. Hameedullah, E. Ahmad, F.M. Husain, Q. Zia, U. Baig, M.R. Zaheer, M.M. Alam, and A.M. Khan, Sci. Rep. 6, 27689 (2016).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  46. D. Costenaro, F. Carniato, G. Gatti, L. Marchese, and C. Bisio, New J. Chem. 38, 6205 (2014).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  47. J.-H. Lee, K.-H. Ko, and B.-O. Park, J. Cryst. Growth 247, 119 (2003).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  48. J. Gilbert, J. Kipling, B. McEnaney, and J. Sherwood, Polymer 3, 1 (1962).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  49. S.M. Shaban, K.T. Mahdi, and A.S. Ahmed, IJARSET. 2, 595 (2015).

    Google Scholar 

  50. H. Rashidi, A. Ahmadpour, F.F. Bamoharram, S.M. Zebarjad, M.M. Heravi, and F. Tayari, Chem. Pap. 68, 516 (2014).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  51. M. Thirumoorthi and J.T.J. Paraksh, Superlattices Microstruct. 85, 237 (2015).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  52. P. Bindu and S. Thomas, J. Theoreti.Appl. Phys. 8, 123 (2014).

    Google Scholar 

  53. K. Pradeev Raj, K. Sadaiyandi, A. Kennedy, S. Sagadevan, Z.Z. Chowdhury, M.R.B. Johan, F.A. Aziz, R.F. Rafique, and R.T. Selvi, Nanoscale Res. Lett. 13, 229 (2018).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  54. K.A. Aly, N.M. Khalil, Y. Algamal, and Q.M.A. Saleem, J. Alloy. Compd. 676, 606 (2016).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  55. P.P. Hankare, P.A. Chate, D.J. Sathe, P.A. Chavan, and V.M. Bhuse, J. Mater. Sci.: Mater. Electron. 20, 374 (2009).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  56. Y. Shahmoradi and D. Souri, Ceram. Int. 45, 7857 (2019).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  57. Ü. Özgür, Ya.I. Alivov, C. Liu, A. Teke, M.A. Reshchikov, S. Doğan, V. Avrutin, S.-J. Cho, and H. Morkoç, J. Appl. Phys. 98, 11 (2005).

    Google Scholar 

  58. A.S.H. Hameed, C. Karthikeyan, S. Sasikumar, V.S. Kumar, S. Kumaresan, and G. Ravi, J. Mater. Chem. B 1, 5950 (2013).

    Google Scholar 

  59. O. Bilgili, Acta Phys. Pol. A 136, 460 (2019).

  60. M. Bououdina, K. Omri, M. El-Hilo, A. El Amiri, O. Lemine, A. Alyamani, E. Hlil, H. Lassri, and L. El Mir, Physica E 56, 107 (2014).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  61. W. Chen, L. Zhao, Y. Wang, J. Miao, S. Liu, Z. Xia, and S. Yuan, Solid State Commun. 134, 827 (2005).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  62. Y. Darma, S. Muhammady, Y.N. Hendri, E. Sustini, R. Widita, and K. Takase, Mater. Sci. Semicond. Process. 93, 50 (2019).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  63. S. Anandan and S. Muthukumaran, Opt. Mater. 35, 2241 (2013).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  64. J.H. Zheng, J.L. Song, Q. Jiang, and J.S. Lian, Appl. Surf. Sci. 258, 6735 (2012).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  65. F. Bosi, G.B. Andreozzi, U. Hålenius, and H. Skogby, Am. Mineral. 96, 594 (2011).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  66. W. Wu, Q. He, and C. Jiang, Nanoscale Res. Lett. 3, 397 (2008).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  67. R.N. Aljawfi, M.J. Alam, F. Rahman, S. Ahmad, A. Shahee, and S. Kumar, Arab. J. Chem. 13, 2207 (2020).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  68. R. Glang and L.I. Maissel, Handbook of Thin Film Technology (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1970).

    Google Scholar 

  69. A.K. Zak, W.H.A. MajidZak, M.E. Abrishami, and R. Yousefi, Solid State Sci. 13, 251 (2011).

    Google Scholar 

  70. S. Sivaselvan, S. Muthukumaran, and M. Ashokkumar, Opt. Mater. 36, 797 (2014).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  71. M. Caglar, A. Arslan, S. Ilican, E. Hür, S. Aksoy, and M. Caglar, J. Alloys Compd. 574, 104 (2013).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  72. O. Bazta, A. Urbieta, J. Piqueras, P. Fernández, M. Addou, J.J. Calvino, and A.B. Hungría, Ceram. Int. 45, 6842 (2019).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  73. J.-T. Lee, E.-C. Su, and M.-Y. Wey, Int. J. Environ. Sci. Technol. 16, 8355 (2019).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  74. M. Hanif, I. Lee, J. Akter, M. Islam, A.A. Zahid, K.P. Sapkota, and J.R. Hahn, Catalysts 9, 608 (2019).

    Google Scholar 

  75. I. Massoudi and A. Rebey, Superlattices Microstruct. 131, 66 (2019).

    CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge the use of the services and facilities of the Basic and Applied Scientific Research Center (BASRC) and the Institute for Research & Medical Consultations (IRMC) at Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Basic and Applied Scientific Research Center, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, P. O. Box 1982, Dammam, 31441, Saudi Arabia

    Imen Massoudi, Taher Ghrib, Amal L. Al-Otaibi, Kawther Al-Hamadah, Shadia Al-Malky,  Maha Al-Otaibi & Mariam Al-Yatimi

  2. Department of Physics, College of Science, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, P. O. Box 1982, Dammam, 31441, Saudi Arabia

    Imen Massoudi, Taher Ghrib, Amal L. Al-Otaibi, Kawther Al-Hamadah, Shadia Al-Malky,  Maha Al-Otaibi & Mariam Al-Yatimi

Authors
  1. Imen Massoudi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Taher Ghrib
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Amal L. Al-Otaibi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Kawther Al-Hamadah
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Shadia Al-Malky
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Maha Al-Otaibi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Mariam Al-Yatimi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Imen Massoudi.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Massoudi, I., Ghrib, T., Al-Otaibi, A.L. et al. Effect of Yttrium Substitution on Microstructural, Optical, and Photocatalytic Properties of ZnO Nanostructures. J. Electron. Mater. 49, 5353–5362 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-020-08274-9

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-020-08274-9

Keywords

Search

Navigation