Photocatalytic activity of TiO2/SiO2 nanocomposites synthesized by reactive magnetron sputtering technique

TiO2/SiO2 nanocomposites were synthesized by DC reactive magnetron cosputtering technique using different O-2: Ar gas mixing ratios. The structural and spectroscopic characteristics of the synthesized samples were introduced using x-ray diffraction (XRD), Fouriertransform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy, and UV-visible spectroscopy. The XRD results revealed that all nanocomposite samples were polycrystalline. The functional groups of these samples were identified by FTIR. The UV-visible spectra of these samples showed an absorption edge at 450 nm. The results of photodegradation of organic and water pollutants under UV irradiation suggest that the photocatalytic activity of TiO2/SIO2 nanocomposite is highly improved as compared with that of TiO2 nanophotocatalyst. (C) 2022 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE)