Abstract
Titanium dioxide (TiO2) thin films as a photocatalyst were prepared using the pulsed laser deposition (PLD) method. The structural and compositional properties of the films are described. Electron binding energy peaks of (a) Ti 2p3/2 and (b) O1s can be observed on films prepared by the PLD method. The crystallinity of the prepared TiO2 film was measured by X-ray diffraction as a parameter of substrate temperature (Ts). XRD measurements revealed that the substrate temperature affected the phase formation, the crystalline structure and the preferred orientation of the TiO2 films. The structure of the films as measured by an atomic force microscopy (AFM) suggests that the films prepared at Ts≤400°C are composed of particles of two sizes : small particles of ∼10 nm in diameter and large particles of ∼100 nm in diameter. The films prepared at Ts=600°C were composed entirely of large particles.
