Nano Synthesis and Characterization of Co and Mn Co-doped ZnO by Solution Combustion Technique

Abstract

Pure zinc oxide (ZnO) and Co and Mn co-doped ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized via a solution combustion technique. Structural, compositional, morphological, functional, optical, magnetization, and photoluminescence properties were examined. X-ray diffraction studies confirmed the hexagonal structure, and the average crystallite size of the synthesized samples was found to be around 20 to 30 nm. From the SEM analysis, all synthesized samples were spherical. Energy dispersion spectra confirm the presence of all selective elements in the synthesized samples. From UV-Vis spectra, we observed that there is decrease in band gap with increase in Co/Mn concentration. From photoluminescence (PL) studies, a decrease in the rate of recombination of electron-hole pair generation is observed. Experiments carried out using vibrating sample magnetometer studies revealed magnetic properties that indicate ferromagnetism in synthesized samples at room temperature. This material offers enormous potential to develop spintronics and optoelectronic materials due to its low cost and good yield. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.