Photoelectrochemical properties of copper pyrovanadate (CuVO) thin films synthesized by pulsed laser deposition.

Polymorphic phases of copper pyrovanadate (α- and β-CuVO) were synthesized by solid state reaction and the mechanisms governing the phase transitions have been highlighted by the ThermoGravimetric Analysis (TGA) and the Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC). The thermal evolution of the lattice parameters was determined by high temperature X-ray Diffraction revealing negative thermal expansion coefficients. The thermogravimetric analysis coupled with differential scanning calorimetry was also used to determine the optimal conditions to obtain a dense target in order to produce thin films by the Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) technique.