2015 Volume 56 Issue 3 Pages 377-380
Photoassisted electrodeposition of a cuprous oxide (Cu2O) thin film was studied to find the optimum conditions lowering the deposition temperature. Cu2O films were electrochemically deposited on FTO by cycling the electrode potential between 0.0 V and −0.8 V (Ag|AgCl), in an aqueous solution. A simple deposition cell was designed to allow simultaneous thermostating and polychromic illumination. Under illumination, the Cu2O film deposition occurred, even at a temperature lower than the temperature observed under dark conditions. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis confirmed that these films were indexed as cubic symmetric structured pure Cu2O (JCPDS: 05-0667), and UV-visible absorption spectra show an optical band-gap energy of 2.5 eV.
