Controlled Chemical Transformation and Crystallization Design for the Formation of Multifunctional Cu-Doped ZnO/ZnAl2O4 Composites

Abstract: Photoactive Cu-doped ZnO–ZnAl2O4 ceramic nanocomposites and coatings were prepared by polymer-salt method. The luminescent spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction methods were used for the study the structure, morphology and materials properties. The nanocomposites consist of small hexagonal ZnO and cubic ZnAl2O4 nanocrystals having size about 10 nm. The study of luminescence properties shows that prepared nanocomposites can be used as light down-converters that transfer short-wave ultraviolet (UV-C) radiation into long-wave ultraviolet (UV-A) and visible spectral range. These nanocomposites can be very attractive in photovoltaic applications as spectral down-converters. Also obtained nanocomposites demonstrate the ability to generate chemically active singlet oxygen under UV-A radiation and blue light. The experiments show that Cu-doped ZnO–ZnAl2O4 materials demonstrate antibacterial activity against gram-positive bacteria. Graphical Abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.] © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.