Developing the optical and radiation shielding of PVA/PVP blend by doping with Fe/NiO nanoparticles

The current work aims to develop the optical and radiation shielding of PVA/PVP blend by doping with Fe/NiO (FNO) nanoparticles. FNO doped with PVA/PVP polymeric nanocomposites (PNCs) were prepared by solution casting procedure. The FT-IR and optical microscopy techniques were utilized to investigate the structure modifications and surface morphology of all samples. The UV–visible examinations were used to explore the optical parameters of all samples. The optical analysis reveals that the optical bandgap of the host matrix shrinks from 5.05 eV to 4.44 eV, while the Urbach energy rises from 0.47 eV to 0.99 eV. The refractive index and dielectric constants are significantly enhanced through FNO doping. The radiation shielding parameters were explored by Phy-X/PSD software. The mass attenuation coefficient enhanced from 1.09 cm²/g to 6.63 cm²/g, whereas the linear attenuation coefficient increased from 1.35 cm⁻¹ to 11.72 cm⁻¹. The half and tenth value layers, mean free path (MFP) and effective atomic number were investigated. Furthermore, the exposure buildup factor and energy absorption buildup factor of all samples were also explored at a wide range of MFP values. The findings enclosed in the current work show that FNO PNCs could be effective candidates in plenty of applications in optical and radiation shielding devices.