Improving the properties of FeO by a sparking method under a uniform magnetic field for a high-performance humidity sensor.

Iron oxide (FeO) thin films are promising semiconductors for electronic applications because FeO is an earth-abundant semiconductor with an appropriate band gap. However, many methods for the synthesis of FeO thin films require a corrosive source, complex procedures, and many types of equipment. Here, we report, for the first time, a simple method for FeO deposition using sparking under a uniform magnetic field.

Photocatalytic efficiency under visible light of a novel Cu-Fe oxide composite films prepared by one-step sparking process.

Copper-iron (Cu-Fe) oxide composite films were successfully deposited on quartz substrate by a facile sparking process. The nanoparticles were deposited on the substrate after sparking off the Fe and Cu tips with different ratios and were then annealed at different temperatures. The network particles were observed after annealing the film at 700 °C.

Effect of magnetic field on improvement of photocatalytic performance of VO/TiO nanoheterostructure films prepared by sparking method.

Our porous VO/TiO nanoheterostructure films (with a Ti/V atomic ratio of 1:1) were fabricated via a single-step sparking method using a strong magnetic field (0.5 T) without annealing requirement for the first time. We found that the magnetic flux arrangement has effect on film crystallization, unique morphology, large specific surface area, and surprisingly controllable phase structure of the films.

Antireflective, photocatalytic, and superhydrophilic coating prepared by facile sparking process for photovoltaic panels.

Soiling of photovoltaic modules and the reflection of incident light from the solar panel glass reduces the efficiency and performance of solar panels; therefore, the glass should be improved to have antifouling properties. In this work, commercial solar panels were coated with sparked titanium films, and the antireflective, super-hydrophilic, and photocatalytic properties of the films were investigated. The reflectance, photocatalytic properties, and degradation of the organic pollutant methylene blue were determined using UV-Vis spectroscopy.

Influence of Co concentration on properties of NiO film by sparking under uniform magnetic field.

Nickel oxide (NiO) films cover numerous electronic applications, including transparent conducting oxides and hole transport layer, because of its high transparency and wide band gap. A sparking discharge is a new and unique method for the deposition of NiO films due to non-complex operation and non-requirement of a vacuum atmosphere. Unfortunately, NiO films by the sparking method display a porous surface with inferior crystallinity.

Porous VO/TiO Nanoheterostructure Films with Enhanced Visible-Light Photocatalytic Performance Prepared by the Sparking Method.

Porous VO/TiO nanoheterostructure films with different atomic ratios of Ti/V (4:1, 2:1, 1:1, and 1:2) were synthesized by a sparking method for the first time. The sparking method, which is a simple and cost-effective process, can synthesize highly porous and composite films in one step. Field-emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) images revealed the porosity morphology of all prepared samples.

Author Correction: Influence of the magnetic field on bandgap and chemical composition of zinc thin films prepared by sparking discharge process.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.

Influence of the magnetic field on bandgap and chemical composition of zinc thin films prepared by sparking discharge process.

We examine the influence of the magnetic field on the chemical reaction of nitrogen and carbon dioxide in sparking electric discharge of zinc wires. Samples are prepared on Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) and quartz substrates in the form of thin films at 0 T, 0.2 T and 0.