Influence of Gd Substitution on Different Properties of ZnO Nanoparticles

Abstract

Gd substituted ZnO nanoparticles were derived by sol-gel autocombustion technique to explore structural, morphological and optical properties. Studies with the Gd concentrations of 1 at%, 3 at% and 5 at% have been done. X-ray diffraction spectroscopic study depicts the hexagoanl struture and it is also confirmed by Transmission electronmicroscopy (TEM). Energy band gap study reveals red shift for 1at%, 3 at% and due to quantum confinement effect Gd doped ZnO nanoparticles shows blue shift for 5 at%. Energy dispersive technique and X-ray photoelectron spectra‟s were used to examine the elemental compositions as well as existance of Gd3+ ion in as synthesised samples.XPS spectra of 5 at% Gd doped ZnO depicts Gd3d with spin orbit splitting and Gd4d overlapping peaks centered at 140.62eV.