Analyses of structural and electrical properties of aluminium doped ZnO-NPs by experimental and mathematical approaches

Abstract

Pure and aluminium doped ZnO-NPs were played the central role in every field of life due to extraordinary physical, chemical and electrical properties. The main objective of the present research was used to enhance the electrical conductivity and reduce the electrical resistivity of aluminium doped zinc oxide-NPs. Synthesis of pure and aluminium doped zinc oxide-NPs (Zn1-xAlxO) at x = 0, 2.5, 5, 7.5 and 10 wt% was carried out by co-precipitation method. The XRD results depicted that hexagonal wurtzite crystal structure and crystallite size in the range of 13–25 nm were calculated by using Debye-Scherrer’s equation. Likewise, the non-uniform, irregular and pore like surface morphology of the prepared NPs was evident from SEM micrographs. Various functional groups (CH, CO, OH and ZnO) attached to the surface of aluminium doped zinc oxide-NPs were identified by FTIR analysis. The UV–VIS spectra also depicted a shift towards the blue region of the visible spectrum. In terms of electrical properties with the help of experimental and mathematical analyses of aluminum doped zinc oxide-NPs exhibited higher conductivity (1.34 × 10−6 to 1.43 × 10−3 S/cm) and lower resistivity (5.46 × 105 to 6.99 × 102 Ω-cm). The present results suggest that the aluminum doped zinc oxide-NPs have been improved the structural and electrical properties which make it a good candidate for optoelectronic devices.

Keywords

• Co-precipitation
• Al-doped ZnO
• Hexagonal wurtzite
• Conductivity
• Resistivity