Synthesis of MnO@Fe₂O₃ core-shell doped PVA/PVP polymeric nanocomposites for electronic and optoelectronic devices: Mechanical, electrical, and optical properties

The core-shell approach was used to synthesize MnO@Fe₂O₃, while the solution casting method was performed to produce a blend of poly (vinyl alcohol) and poly (vinyl pyrrolidone) (70/30 wt%). Subsequently, MnO@Fe₂O₃ was employed as nanofillers (nFs) in the blend at 0, 0.06, 0.3, 0.6, 3, and 6 wt% concentrations. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and x-ray diffraction (XRD) were used to characterize the synthesized polymeric nanocomposite (PNC) films. The XRD and FTIR confirm the probable interactions between nanoparticles and polymeric films. SEM images of the surface show that the entire film’s surface is uniformly and homogeneously distributed for 0.6 wt% nFs. The composite film’s tensile strength was enhanced by adding 6 wt% nFs, from 9.45 MPa for the pure (PVA-PVP) film to 22.35 MPa. This addition also reduced the indirect optical band gap from 4.84 eV for pure (PVA/PVP) blend to 4.71 eV. Two laser sources (He-Ne laser at 632.8 nm and green laser at 533 nm) were used to determine the optical limiting behavior of polymeric nanocomposite films. The output power of lasers with wavelengths of 532 nm and 650 nm drops from 5.49 to 2.4 mW and 19.8 to 9.4 mW, respectively, as the blend matrix’s nFs concentration rises to 6 wt%. Also, the impact of temperature on the dielectric properties of the 6 wt% PNC film was examined. The dielectric constant gradually increased with rising temperature and decreased linearly with increasing frequency at constant temperature. The findings suggest that nanocomposites exist and are widely recommended for optoelectronics, microelectronics, and radiation detection.