Investigation of structural and optical properties of boron doped ZnO nanomaterials produced by hydrothermal method

In this thesis, the structural and optical properties of Boron (B) doped zinc oxide (ZnO) nanomaterials synthesized using the hydrothermal method were investigated. ZnO's properties such as wide bandgap, high thermal conductivity, and high exciton binding energy enable its widespread use in optoelectronic devices, sensors, and photocatalytic applications. This thesis aimed to utilize B doping to enhance ZnO's properties and impart new functional characteristics. The hypotheses of the thesis propose that B doping will positively affect the crystal structure, morphology, and optical properties of ZnO. In this context, ZnO nanomaterials with various B doping concentration ratios were synthesized using the hydrothermal method. During the synthesis process, undoped ZnO and ZnO nanomaterials mixed with different weight percentages (1%, 2%, and 5%) of B content were produced. Advanced characterization techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and Ultraviolet–visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy were employed to examine the structural and optical properties of these synthesized materials. XRD analyses revealed that B doping did not cause significant changes in the crystal structure of ZnO but affected the crystal size and lattice parameters. SEM images demonstrated that boron doping altered the surface morphology of ZnO. UV-Vis spectroscopy results showed that boron doping reduced ZnO's bandgap to 3.21 eV. The findings indicate that B-doped ZnO nanomaterials have potential applications in solar cells, photodetectors, and other optoelectronic devices. The results of the study demonstrate that B doping can significantly improve the performance and functional properties of ZnO.