Effect of annealing on the supercapacitor performance of CuO-PAA/CNT films

We report the synthesis of CuO-poly(acrylic) acid/CNT hybrid thin films by a cost-effective spin-coating technique for supercapacitor application. Hybrid films were annealed at 300, 400, and 500 A degrees C to study its effect on the supercapacitor behavior. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy techniques were used for the phase identification and determination of the organic component in the hybrid films, respectively. Surface morphology of the films was examined by scanning electron microscopy and revealed the novel ring-like structures. The average diameter of the ring changes from 0.5 to 1.2 mu m with increase in annealing temperature. Cyclic voltammetry is employed to estimate the specific capacitance (C (sp)) of the films in 1 M H2SO4 electrolyte. It is observed that the C (sp) increases from 188 to 258 Fg(-1) with increase in annealing temperature.