Enhancing the Structural, Morphology, and Photoluminescence Properties of TiO ₂ Synthesized via the Sol–Gel Method

Abstract

Abstract Titanium dioxide (TiO 2 ) nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized using the sol–gel method. The samples obtained were subsequently annealed at different temperatures, ranging from 450°C to 1200 ○ C. The structural, morphology, and photoluminescence properties of TiO 2 were investigated. The x‐ray diffraction (XRD) results of the TiO 2 (as‐prepared) revealed an amorphous structure. The annealed samples revealed a mixed phase of anatase and rutile, with rutile becoming more prominent as the temperature increased. The crystallite size increased from 3.183 nm to 35.328 nm. The macrostrain decreased from 2.5 to 0.21. The Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy also revealed the formation of titanium dioxide, as indicated by the presence of the Ti─O functional group. The field emission gun scanning electron microscopy (FEG–SEM) showed a spherical shape of TiO 2 NPs. The elemental composition of titanium (Ti) and oxygen (O) was revealed by energy‐dispersive x‐ray spectroscopy (EDX). Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) revealed an irregular morphology at higher annealing temperatures (AT). Photoluminescence (PL) spectra were used to analyze the optical properties of TiO 2 . TiO 2 annealed at 600°C showed low PL intensity, whereas TiO 2 annealed at 1200°C had the highest PL intensity. The Commission Internationale de I'Eclairage (CIE) analysis revealed that AT has tuned the emission color from blue–green to more green.