Micro y nanoestructuras de ZnO:Ce y ZnO:Ru : síntesis, caracterización y aplicaciones ópticas y fotocatalíticas

Abstract

El trabajo de tesis que aquí comienza se centra en mostrar y discutir los resultados experimentales obtenidos de la investigación del óxido de zinc dopado* con cerio y con rutenio. La intención de estos dopados ha sido la de mejorar las ya de por sí excelentes propiedades del ZnO, con el objetivo de emplearse en procesos de fotocatálisis y dispositivos optoelectrónicos. El ZnO es un conocido semiconductor tipo n de la familia II-VI que ha atraído una considerable atención en la comunidad científica en las últimas décadas gracias a su aplicabilidad en ámbitos como la optoelectrónica, la catálisis, la detección de gases, la piezoelectricidad o la espintrónica...The present PhD thesis work focuses on showing and discussing the experimental results obtained from the investigation of cerium and ruthenium-doped zinc oxide. The intention of this doping has been to improve the excellent properties of ZnO, with the aim of using it in photocatalysis processes and optoelectronic devices.ZnO is a well-known n-type semiconductor from the II-VI family that has attracted considerable attention in the scientific community over the past decades due to its applicability in fields such as optoelectronics, catalysis, gas sensing, piezoelectricity, and spintronics. Doping with elements such as cerium and ruthenium has proven to be an effective strategy for modifying some of its properties. It is known that the incorporation of Ce atoms can significantly enhance the photocatalytic performance of ZnO by generating new energy levels within the bandgap. Additionally, the excitation of the Ce atoms results in well-defined luminescent emissions. On the other hand, ruthenium increases the carrier density when it occupies substitutional positions of zinc, mainly affecting the optical and electrical properties of ZnO. With both dopants, a reduction in the electron-hole recombination rate is expected, along with significant changes in the luminescence emission...