Electrical, structural, and photocatalytic properties of copper oxide nanowire

Abstract

Using a direct oxidation method in a horizontal quartz tube, copper oxide nanowires are grown on a Cu substrate. In order to investigate the growth temperature effects on the structural, morphological, electrical, and photocatalytic properties of the copper oxide nanowires, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, a KEITHLEY 2361 system, and a homemade photoreactor are used. The X-ray diffraction results show that both CuO and Cu2O phases are formed, and while increasing the growth temperature, the crystallinity is improved and the intensity of most of the diffraction peaks increases. The scanning electron microscopy images at different growth temperatures show that the number, density, and length of the copper oxide nanowires on pre-formed micro-scaled grains increase, when the growth temperature increases to 700°C and sharper nanowires with average diameters of 1–3 µm grow on the surface. Also I–V curves show that by raising the growth temperature, the conductivity of the samples increases. In addition, the photocatalytic activities are studied by photocatalytic degradation of Congo red dye, and based on these results, the sample grown at 700°C with the highest number and density of the nanowires showed the best photocatalytic performance and electrical conductivity. The results can be used to guide better understanding of the growth behavior of copper oxide nanowires and can be useful for the development of novel photocatalytic nanodevices.