Semiconducting composite oxide Y2CuO4-5CuO thin films for investigation of photoelectrochemical properties.

An octa-nuclear heterobimetallic complex [Y2Cu6Cl0.7(dmae)6(OAc)7.3(OH)4(H2O)2]·3H2O·0.3CH3C6H5 (dmae = dimethylaminoethanoate; OAc = acetato) was synthesized, characterized by melting point analysis, elemental analysis, FT-IR, and single crystal X-ray diffraction analysis and implemented at 600 °C under an oxygen atmosphere for the deposition of Y2CuO4-5CuO composite thin films by aerosol assisted chemical vapor deposition (AACVD). The chemical composition and surface morphology of the deposited thin film have been determined by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray analysis that suggest the formation of impurity-free crystallite mixtures of the Y2CuO4-5CuO composite, with well-defined evenly distributed particles in the size range of 19-24 nm. An optical band gap energy of 1.82 eV was estimated by UV-visible spectrophotometry. PEC studies show that under illumination with a 150 W halogen lamp and at a potential of 0.8 V, a photocurrent density of 9.85 μA cm(-2) was obtained.