Structural, EPR, optical and Raman studies of Nd2O3:Cu2+ nanophosphors

Efficient route for preparation of Nd3+ doped Y2O3 nanoparticles at intermediate temperature

Yttrium oxide nanoparticles are one of the proper host materials for rare-earth elements. The rare-earth ions doped in yttrium oxide nanoparticles have medical applications such as biological imaging and photonic applications such as waveguides in the infrared region, laser mediums, sensitizers, LEDs, etc. The preparation of rare-earth ion-doped Y2O3 nanoparticles is usually done through the solid-state process and at a very high temperature, such as 1200 °C. In this research, using the solid-state process and during multi-step heat treatment at temperatures of 210 °C, 380 °C, and 500 °C, white nanopowders of Nd:Y2O3were prepared in 6 h. The produced nanopowders were studied using various characterization methods. The results showed that the produced nanopowders have a cubic structure and an average particle size between 22 and 65 nm.

Green synthesis of ionic liquid mediated neodymium oxide nanoparticles via Couroupita guianensis abul leaves extract with its biological applications

Bio-nanoparticles have created a new era of rapid, harmless and nontoxic drugs for various biomedical applications. The nanoparticles (NPs) of rare earth metal oxides attract researcher's attention due to their excellent chemical and physical properties that exhibit potential activity against disease causing pathogens. Couroupita guianensis (C. guianensis) abul is a medicinal plant whose leaves are effectively used for the synthesis of neodymium oxide (Nd₂O₃) NPs. The 1-butyl 3-methyl imidazolium tetrafluoroborate (BMIM BF₄) ionic liquid is used as a stabilizing agent to get better the morphology and biological properties of Nd₂O₃ NPs. 1-Butene, 4,4-diethoxy-2-methyl is the main compound in C. guianensis abul leaves extract was confirmed by GCMS analysis. The structure of synthesized Nd₂O₃ (without ionic liquid) and Nd₂O₃-IL (with ionic liquid) NPs is identified by powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD). The vibrations of the different functional groups were investigated by Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) and Raman spectroscopy. In UV-Vis spectra, the optical absorption was identified to be 210 and 221nm of Nd₂O₃ and Nd₂O₃-IL samples and the PL spectrum provides blue and green emission peaks at 386 and 554 nm. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and DLS spectra illustrate the electronic configuration and particle size of the synthesized Nd₂O₃-IL NPs. The morphology, surface nature and lattice spacing were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The purity and weight percentage of the compound presented can be identified by the energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). The biomedical properties such as antibacterial, antioxidant, antidiabetic, anti-inflammatory and anticancer activities were investigated. Finally, the overall biocompatible studies reveal that the ionic liquid assisted Nd₂O₃ NPs can be considered as a potential drug for pharmaceutical and biomedical applications.

Influence of RE (Pr3+, Er3+, Nd3+) doping on structural, vibrational and enhanced persistent photocatalytic properties of ZnO nanostructures

Rare earth (RE- Pr, Er and Nd) doped ZnO nanostructures were prepared through simple wet chemical precipitation route. The RE doping induced interesting morphological transition from spherical to flower like structures were analyzed. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements revealed that the prepared materials were of highly crystalline in nature and RE dopant ions did not altered the crystal structure of ZnO. The microstrain of ZnO was altered with respect to the nature of dopants. In the case of the Pr doped ZnO, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis confirmed that the dopant (Pr) ions successfully substituted in the ZnO lattice. Raman spectra revealed RE doping induced lower energy side shift and variation in intensity of the peaks related to the characteristic phonon modes of ZnO. In the case of Nd doped ZnO nanostructures, dopant induced suppression in classical Raman modes and evolution of multiphonon related modes were identified. Optical diffuse reflectance spectral (DRS) measurements, along with the characteristic excitonic band of ZnO, other bands associated to the transitions of 4f energy levels related to the RE ions were observed. The partially filled 4f orbitals led to the enhanced photocatalytic activity in RE doped ZnO nanostructures. The observed enhanced photocatalytic activity in RE doped ZnO when compared to bare ZnO was discussed. The decolorization efficiency of MB ensued the following order 96 > 94 > 86 > 78% for ZnErO, ZnNdO, ZnPrO and ZnO, respectively.

Synthesis, characterization, and photoluminescence property of Nd-TUD-1

Here, five different samples of neodymium (Nd) incorporated 3D-mesoporous siliceous materials were fabricated using a single-step hydrothermal technique. Typically, all samples were subjected to several qualitative elemental and quantitative analyses such as X-ray diffraction, N₂ -adsorption/desorption, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray, mapping, high resolution transmission electron microscopy, diffuse reflectance ultraviolet-visible, and Raman spectroscopy. The characterization results showed that at small loading of Nd (i.e. Si/Nd < 20), only isolated centres of trivalent neodymium ions were tetrahedrally coordinated in the TUD-1 matrix. However, with increasing neodymium loading, additional nanoparticles of neodymium oxide with size 10-20 nm were embedded into silica host pores. Detailed photoluminescence (PL) analysis of all samples was carried out by recording the emission profiles at two diverse excitation wavelengths, 333 and 343 nm, to understand the effect of the Nd³⁺ environment on the PL emission spectra with special attention to the area between 400 and 600 nm. Most importantly, different peaks of the emission spectrum of each sample exhibited a distinct shape based on the Nd³⁺ environment. This performance was superior evidence that PL can be applied as a simple and efficient characterization tool to understand the nature of Nd³⁺ ion linkage with a silica matrix.

Optical Properties of Neodymium Oxide Nanoparticle-Doped Polyvinyl Alcohol Film

The structural and optical characteristics of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) doped with different concentration of Nd2O3 nanoparticles to use an active media for polymer laser were studied. The PVA polymer was considered as the host and Nd2O3 nanoparticles as the active element. The media as a thin film was prepared using spin coating technique. Structural properties of layers were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern and atomic force microscope (AFM) technique. The effect of the concentrations of the neodymium source on the optical properties of Nd2O3/PVA thin films was investigated through UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy and their optical band gap was evaluated. Also, the FTIR and fluorescence spectra of the samples were detected. The fluorescence spectra of films showed that the maximum wavelength occurred at 568[Formula: see text]nm with no significant shift.

Synthesis, structural and luminescence studies of magnesium oxide nanopowder

Nanoparticles of magnesium oxide (MgO) have been prepared by low temperature solution combustion and hydrothermal method respectively. Powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) patterns of MgO samples prepared by both the methods show cubic phase. The Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) studies reveal, the combustion derived product show highly porous, foamy and fluffy in nature than hydrothermally derived sample. The optical absorption studies of MgO show surface defects in the range 250-300 nm. The absorption peak at ∼290 nm might be due to F-centre. Photoluminescence (PL) studies were carried upon exciting at 290 nm. The sample prepared via combustion method show broad emission peak centred at ∼395 nm in the bluish-violet (3.14 eV) region. However, in hydrothermal prepared sample show the emission peaks at 395 and 475 nm. These emission peaks were due to surface defects present in the sample since nanoparticles exhibits large surface to volume ratio and quantum confinement effect.