Exploring the optical limiting, photocatalytic and antibacterial properties of the BiFeO3-NaNbO3 nanocomposite system.

Thin films of BiFeO3-NaNbO3 composites were fabricated in a PMMA matrix. XRD and HRTEM were used for structural investigations. The grain size and surface morphology of samples were analysed through HRTEM images. The self-cleaning property of any material accelerates its industrial applications. Hence, along with the optical limiting performance, the photocatalytic and antibacterial activity of BiFeO3-NaNbO3 composite samples were also studied. BiFeO3-NaNbO3 films fabricated in the PMMA matrix exhibit strong optical nonlinearity when excited by 5 ns laser pulses at 532 nm. The origin and magnitude of the observed optical nonlinearity were explained on the basis of the weak absorption saturation and strong excited state absorption. The photocatalytic performance of samples was analysed by dye degradation method using Methyl Orange dye. The dye degradation rate in the presence of the catalyst is heeded in a particular time interval, which exhibits the photocatalytic performance of the samples. The destruction of microbial organisms that are in contact with the material was contemplated, which could prove its antibacterial activity. The effect of the particle size on the photocatalytic activity was also investigated.

Diamagnetic cavitization of laser-produced barium plasma in transverse magnetic field.

Influence of uniform transverse magnetic field and ambient Ar pressure on the plasma plume produced by Nd:YAG laser ablation of barium has been investigated by time-of-flight optical emission spectroscopy. Experiments were carried out with laser pulse energy of 150 mJ and 0.45 Tesla magnetic field. The time-of-flight profiles showed ambient pressure independent behavior at 6-mm distance from the target, which is attributed to the diamagnetic behavior of the laser plasma. A theoretical model is proposed that may explain the compression of temporal profiles of the ionic lines.

Reduced graphene oxide-ZnO self-assembled films: tailoring the visible light photoconductivity by the intrinsic defect states in ZnO.

ZnO is a wide direct bandgap semiconductor; its absorption can be tuned to the visible spectral region by controlling the intrinsic defect levels. Combining graphene with ZnO can improve its performance by photo-induced charge separation by ZnO and electronic transport through graphene. When reduced graphene oxide-ZnO is prepared by a hydrothermal method, the photophysical studies indicate that oxygen vacancy defect states are healed out by diffusion of oxygen from GO to ZnO during its reduction. Because of the passivation of oxygen vacancies, the visible light photoconductivity of the hybrid is depleted, compared to pure ZnO. In order to overcome this reduction in photocurrent, a photoelectrode is fabricated by layer-by-layer (LBL) self-assembly of ZnO and reduced graphene oxide. The multilayer films are fabricated by the electrostatic LBL self-assembly technique using negatively charged poly(sodium 4-styrene sulfonate)-reduced graphene oxide (PSS-rGO) and positively charged polyacrylamide-ZnO (PAM-ZnO) as building blocks. The multilayer films fabricated by this technique will be highly interpenetrating; it will enhance the interaction between the ZnO and rGO perpendicular to the electrode surface. Upon illumination under bias voltage defect assisted excitation occurs in ZnO and the photogenerated charge carriers can transfer to graphene. The electron transferred to graphene sheets can recombine in two ways; either it can recombine with the holes in the valence band of ZnO in its bilayer or the ZnO in the next bilayer. This type of tunnelling of electrons from graphene to the successive bilayers will result in efficient charge transfer. This transfer and propagation of electron will enhance as the number of bilayers increases, which in turn improve the photocurrent of the multilayer films. Therefore this self-assembly technique is an effective approach to fabricate semiconductor-graphene films with excellent conductivity.

Core-shell nanostructures of covalently grafted polyaniline multi-walled carbon nanotube hybrids for improved optical limiting.

Polyaniline multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) hybrids are synthesized by the in situ polymerization of aniline in the presence of phenylenediamine-functionalized MWCNTs. Along with the aniline monomer, the aniline moiety on the surface of phenylenediamine-functionalized MWCNTs also participates in the polymerization and acts as a covalent bridge between the polyaniline and the MWCNT. The photoluminescence quenching in the hybrid, due to the electron transfer between the polyaniline and the MWCNT, and the resulting improvement in optical limiting are also discussed. The large nonlinear absorption coefficient with the low-limiting threshold of the hybrids compared to polyaniline is attributed to the combined nonlinear optical (NLO) mechanisms and the photo-induced electron transfer interactions.

Defect engineering in ZnO nanocones for visible photoconductivity and nonlinear absorption.

Nanostructured ZnO is a promising material for optoelectronic and nonlinear optical applications because of the flexibility of band gap engineering by means of various defect states present in it. Employing the time-correlated single photon counting photoluminescence technique, the correlation between defect levels and optoelectronic and nonlinear optical properties of ZnO is explored in this work. By a facile solution method, ZnO nanocones with a dominating preferential orientation along energetically less favorable, oxygen terminated (10̄11) facets were synthesized using a passivating capping agent. Photoluminescence spectra demonstrate that the as-grown samples have both oxygen and zinc vacancies, and after calcination in air oxygen vacancies vanish, but zinc vacancies are enhanced. Photoconductivity of the samples reduces significantly upon calcination, confirming the reduction in oxygen vacancies. However, the samples exhibit a significant enhancement in the nonlinear optical absorption coefficient upon calcination, indicating that the effective two-photon absorption causing the nonlinear optical behaviour originates from zinc vacancies. These results illustrate the vast possibilities of band gap engineering in intrinsic ZnO for future optoelectronic applications.

Enhanced optical limiting in polystyrene-ZnO nanotop composite films.

In this work we investigate the optical limiting property of polystyrene-zinc-oxide (ZnO) nanotop composite films, using an open aperture Z-scan technique. The nanocomposites are prepared for different loading concentrations of ZnO and are fabricated using spin and dip coating techniques. On exposing the films to a pulsed nanosecond laser at 532 nm, the nonlinear absorption (NLA) coefficient is found to be greater for spin-coated films compared to dip-coated films. The measured NLA coefficient is found to be enhanced with an increase in loading concentration of ZnO in the monomer for both spin- and dip-coated films.

Thermal lens spectrum of organic dyes using optical parametric oscillator.

The wavelength dependence of thermal lens signal from organic dyes are studied using dual beam thermal lens technique. It is found that the profile of thermal lens spectrum widely differ from the conventional absorption spectrum in the case of rhodamine B unlike in the case of crystal violet. This is explained on the basis of varying contribution of nonradiative relaxations from the excited vibronic levels.