Preparation, morphology, and thermal and optical properties of thin films of ferric chloride/polyethylene oxide composites

Pure poly (ethylene oxide) (PEO) films and PEO-FeCl з films of various concentration were prepared and studied for thermal and optical properties. Various analytical techniques like XRD, EDX, SEM, TGA, and UV were used to examine the structural properties of PEO and PEO-FeCl з systems. X-ray scans (XRD) revealed the existence of some crystalline part in the PEO matrix. The concentration of FeCl 3 has a great effect on the crystallinity of PEO. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) data established that accumulation of FeCl з to PEO films enhanced the thermal stability of PEO. The optical properties of these systems were also studied in the UV-Visible region as a function of FeCl з concentration at room temperature. The obtained data were analyzed in terms of absorption formula for non-crystalline materials. From the measured absorption data optical energy gaps (Eopt) were determined. The optical energy gap was found to decrease with the increase in FeCl з concentration, which indicates that FeCl з concentration had a significant influence on optical energy band gap. The absorption coefficient increased sharply at concentration of FeCl з (5%) wt as compared with the pure PEO.