Sol-gel synthesis and thermal characterization of SnO2 nanoparticles

SnO2 nanoparticles are synthesized by sol-gel technique. The synthesized nanoparticles are stoichiometric and possess SnO2 phase with tetragonal unit cell crystal structure confirmed by analysis of dispersive energy of X-rays and X-ray diffraction techniques, respectively. The scanning electron microscopy showed the particles to be formed of well oriented nano-platelets. The electron transmission and diffraction microscopy showed the nanoparticles to be spherical in shape and polycrystalline, respectively. The optical analysis showed the particles to possess direct optical band gap of 3.64 eV. The Fourier transform infra red spectroscopy of the nanoparticles showed presence of water molecules on the nanoparticles due to its hydrous synthesis. The photoluminescence and Raman analysis showed presence of oxygen vacancy defects. The thermal analysis of the nanoparticles showed them to possess three steps weight loss. The determined thermodynamic kinetic parameters showed the nanoparticles to decompose in the high temperature range. The results are discussed in details.