Controlling the optical constants of PVC nanocomposite films for optoelectronic applications

Metal oxide/PVC nanocomposites films were synthesized by simple facile deposition method using tetrahydrofuran as a solvent. Different metal oxides types (ZnO, Al2O3 and SiO2) and concentrations (1%, 5% and 10%) were used. The as-prepared PVC nanocomposites films were characterized by SEM, FT-IR and UV-vis spectrophotometer. Optical constants were found to be highly dependent on the type and concentration of the metal oxide. The obtained results showed that by controlling the absorption coefficient and tuning the band gap of the PVC nanocomposites films, we can get materials suitable for anti-reflection coating and high refractive lenses applications. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.