Insights into Structural and Optical Properties of ZnO Nanoparticles

Abstract

ZnO nanoparticles have been synthesized from zinc nitrate as precursor and potassium hydroxide as precipitating agent using precipitation method. The prepared nanoparticles were characterized by using X-ray diffraction, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and UV-Visible Spectroscopy analysis confirmed the formation of ZnO nanoparticles having hexagonal unit cell and wurtzite structure. The FTIR analysis provided information about the presence of functional groups in prepared nanoparticles. The UV-Vis absorption spectrum showed prominent peaks near to 360nm range whereas small peaks were also seen near to that region. The energy band gap and Urbach energies were also calculated as 3.16ev and 0.11364ev using Tauc plot and Urbach energy plots respectively. The synthesis method demonstrated simplicity and scalability, suggesting its potential for large-scale production in various applications.