Iron Oxide Decorated Titania Nanotubes for Solar Energy Harvesting Applications

A hybrid structure consisting of iron oxide nanoparticles decorated on titania (TiO₂) nanotube arrays has been synthesized by a very rapid forced hydrolysis method, followed by post annealing treatment. The morphology and structure analysis of the hybrid TiO₂/Fe₂O₃ composites indicated uniform, conformal coating of the hematite nanoparticles on the anatase titania nanotubes. Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy was used to investigate the absorption properties of the TiO₂/Fe₂O₃ structures. An increase in the absorbance of visible light in the range 380 nm to 600 nm has been observed when compared with pristine nanotubes. This is similar to the visible light absorbance enhancement observed in Ru-dye sensitized titania nanotubes. Thus iron oxide decorated titania nanotube demonstrate immense potential for use as inexpensive and robust materials for improved solar energy harvesting for photovoltaic applications.