Obtaining nanoparticles of Cu2O by means of a pulsed discharge of CH3CH2OH-N2

Abstract

CH3CH2OH-N2 plasma mixture was used to synthesize cuprous oxide (Cu2O) micro-particles in a pulsed DC sputtering system, using a ethanol pressure of 1.5 Torr and a current of 400 mA at a frequency of 30 kHz. The plasma mixture was used successfully to obtain the micro-particles of Cu2O using a copper (Cu) target and a stainless steel substrate. The Cu2O products are characterized by the scanning electron microscope (SEM), the results show that the morphology of the Cu2O microparticles have a spherical shape which are randomly distributed on the stainless steel substrate. Raman results show that from the CH3CH2OH-N2 plasma mixture it is possible to obtain one of the Cu oxidation phases which corresponds to Cu2O due to the fact that within the sample analyzed by means of Raman it is possible to observe only the peaks that correspond to the Cu2O phase. The analysis by energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) serves to determine the stoichiometric balance present in the substrate, from which the presence of the characteristic peaks of stainless steel was confirmed, along with the characteristic peaks of Cu and O which exhibit an atomic ratio of 2:1 respectively. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) was used to again determine the morphology of the microparticles, finding a spherical morphology. In addition, the value of roughness and grain size was determined, finding values of 20 nm and 45 nm respectively. The images 3-D show the presence of peaks and valleys within the substrate and an non-homogeneous distribution of spherical micro-particles on the surface of the stainless steel.