Optical bandgap dependence on crystallite size of SnO2 synthesized by stannic chloride from chlorination tin ingot
摘要
We report the dependence of the optical band gap on the crystallite size of SnO2, co-occurring with impurities of Al, Cl, Ca, Fe, Mg, Na, and Si. SnO₂ nanoparticles with rod-like and polyhedral nanostructures were produced by precipitation methods using SnCl₄ as a precursor. The SnCl₄ precursor was synthesized through the chlorination of a pyrometallurgical product derived from tin ingots. The as-synthesized SnO₂ were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), transmission electron microscopy with energy-dispersive spectroscopy (TEM-EDS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and UV–Vis’s spectroscopy. The rod-like and polyhedral SnO₂ particles exhibited a tetragonal crystal structure (space group P4₂/mnm). The band gap estimated from the UV–Vis spectra ranged from 3.58 to 3.70 eV. Quantum confinement effects were observed in the increase of the optical band gap as the crystallite size of SnO₂ decreased. A blue shift in the optical absorption was observed in SnO₂ nanoparticles with elevated chloride concentration.