Microwave-AssistedSonochemical Synthesis of Copper Oxide Nanostructures: Optimization of Seed Layer Number and Low Microwave Powerfor Enhanced Morphological, Structural, and Optical Properties

Abstract

Copper oxide (CuO), a transition metal oxide, has garnered significant attention due to its versatile properties and potential applications in batteries, magnetic storage, gas sensors, supercapacitors, catalysts, antimicrobials, solar cells, and superconductors. CuO is especially promising owing to its narrow bandgap (1.2 eV), environmental friendliness, low cost, and ease of fabrication. This study investigates the structural and optical properties of CuO films synthesized via a microwave-assisted sonochemical process on fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) glass substrates coated with a seeded catalyst layer. The influence of varying seed layer numbers and low microwave power settings (P10, P20, and P30) on the morphology, crystallinity, and optical behaviorof the nanostructured CuO thin films was systematically examined. Morphological analysis was conducted using Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM), crystallinity and chemical bonding were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), and opticalproperties were assessed via UV-Vis-NIR spectroscopy. Results demonstrate successful formation of CuO nanostructures(Ns)with enhanced properties under optimized low microwave power conditions, confirming the effectiveness of the microwave-assisted sonochemical technique for CuO synthesis.