Comprehensive experimental and theoretical studies on the synthesis and characterization of electrodeposited nanostructured Cu2O thin films

In this study, we present a comprehensive analysis of the morphology, microstructure, and optical properties of electrodeposited Cu2O thin films on SnO2:F (FTO) substrates. The films were synthesized using the galvanostatic method at varying pH levels (9 and 12) and temperatures (40, 45, 50, 55, 60, and 65 degrees C). Characterization techniques employed include scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman and UVVIS spectroscopy, photoluminescence (PL), and electrochemical measurements. Additionally, a theoretical study based on Wulff's theorem was conducted to investigate the influence of the synthesis environment on the growth process. The obtained films exhibited uniformity, reproducibility, stability, purity (solely the Pn3m Cu2O phase), and crystallinity. Furthermore, we successfully achieved thin films with various morphologies (cubic and octahedron, truncated or not), growth orientations [111 or 100], with relative high density of cupper vacancies and charge carrier, making a significant contribution to the exploration of multifunctional semiconductor materials for applications in photocatalysis, photovoltaic cells, photoelectrochemistry, and others advanced technologies.