Preparation and Characterization of Nanostructured Pt/TiO₂ Thin Films Treated Using Electron Beam

Pt nanoparticle-doped titanium dioxide (Pt/TiO₂) thin films were prepared on a silicon wafer substrate by sol–gel spin coating process. The prepared thin films were treated with electron beam (EB at 1.1 MeV, 100, 200, 300 kGy) at air atmosphere. The effect of EB-irradiation on the composition of the treated thin films, optical properties and morphology of thin films were investigated by various analytical techniques such as X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE), X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission-scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The crystal structure of the TiO₂ layer was found to be an anatase phase and the size of TiO₂ particles was determined to be about 13 nm. Pt nanoparticles with diameter of 5 nm were observed on surface of the films. A new layer (presumed to be Pt-Ti complex and/or PtO₂ compound) was created in the Pt/TiO₂ thin film treated with EB (300 kGy). The transmittance of thin film decreased with EB treatment whereas the refractive index increased.