Spray-Pyrolyzed Thin Films of GO, TiO₂, ZnO, and SnO₂: A Comparative Structural and Morphological Study

This study examined the optical characteristics of graphene oxide (GO) and its nanocomposites (GO@TiO₂, GO@ZnO, and GO@SnO₂). The nanocomposites were prepared using a hydrothermal method. X-ray diffraction (XRD), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were used to investigate the structure and morphology of the materials. The XRD diffractograms confirmed the successful integration of metal nanoparticles onto GO sheets. For GO@ZnO, characteristic diffraction peaks confirmed the presence of ZnO nanoparticles. For GO@SnO₂, peaks corresponding to crystallographic planes (110), (101), (200), (211), (220), and (112) confirmed the SnO₂ phase. For GO@TiO₂, peaks associated with planes (001), (101), (004), (200), and (110) confirmed the TiO₂ phase. The pictures seen in the crystallographic plans (110), (101), (200), (211), (220), and (112) for the nanocomposite GO@SnO₂ confirm the creation of the phase SnO₂. Furthermore, the development of the GO@TiO₂ nanocomposite is confirmed by the images associated with plans (001), (101), (004), (200), and (110), which are characteristic of the phase TiO₂. EDX analysis revealed the presence of oxygen-containing groups characteristic of GO and confirmed the incorporation of metal oxide nanoparticles within the nanocomposites.  AFM investigations showed that the introduction of nanoparticles resulted in a decrease in surface roughness and altered the topography of GO sheets. FESEM images further confirmed the morphological changes, showing spherical ZnO nanoparticles, leaf-like SnO₂ structures, and agglomerated TiO₂ grains on GO surfaces.