posted on 2016-12-16, 00:00authored bySanjayan Sathasivam, Benjamin A. D. Williamson, Andreas Kafizas, Shaeel A. Althabaiti, Abdullah Y. Obaid, Sulaiman N. Basahel, David O. Scanlon, Claire J. Carmalt, Ivan P. Parkin
This
paper reports the novel synthesis of amorphous Ta2O5 and the subsequent isolation of the orthorhombic (β)
crystallographic phase, using aerosol-assisted chemical vapor deposition.
Hybrid density functional theory was used to obtain the calculated
optical band gap (3.83 eV) for the first time, which closely matches
our experimental findings (3.85 eV). The films were highly transparent
in the visible and near-IR region of the electromagnetic spectrum.
The refractive indexes, calculated using the Swanepoel method, showed
good agreement with literature findings. The photocatalytic properties
of the films, determined through the photominerilization of stearic
acid under 254 nm radiation showed the amorphous sample to be an order
of magnitude superior over crystalline β-Ta2O5.