Key Factor Study for Amphiphilic Block Copolymer‐Templated Mesoporous SnO2 Thin Film Synthesis: Influence of Solvent and Catalyst

• Published in: Advanced materials interfaces Vol. 7; no. 18
• Main Authors: Yin, Shanshan, Tian, Ting, Wienhold, Kerstin S., Weindl, Christian L., Guo, Renjun, Schwartzkopf, Matthias, Roth, Stephan V., Müller‐Buschbaum, Peter
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Weinheim John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01-09-2020
• Subjects: Ambient conditions; Amphiphilic block copolymers; Block copolymers; Buried structures; Cassiterite; Catalysts; Chemical properties; Chemical synthesis; Crystallinity; Energy storage; Film preparation; Grazing incidence small-angle X-ray scattering; High specific surface area; Hydrogen bond interaction; Hydrogen bonds; mesoporous structures; Morphology; Physical and chemical properties; Pore structure; PS-b-PEO; Scanning electron microscopy; Scientific researches; SnO2; Sol-gel processes; Sols; Solvents; Surface morphology; Thin film morphology; Thin films; Tin dioxide; Tin oxides; Water chemistry; X ray scattering
• ISSN: 2196-7350; 2196-7350
• DOI: 10.1002/admi.202001002

As a crucial material in the field of energy storage, SnO2 thin films are widely applied in daily life and have been in the focus of scientific research. Compared to the planar counterpart, mesoporous SnO2 thin films with high specific surface area possess more attractive physical and chemical properties. In the present work, a novel amphiphilic block copolymer‐assisted sol–gel chemistry is utilized for the synthesis of porous tin oxide (SnO2). Two key factors for the sol–gel stock solution preparation, the solvent category and the catalyst content, are systematically varied to tune the thin film morphologies. A calcination process is performed to remove the polymer template at 500 °C in ambient conditions. The surface morphology and the buried inner structure are probed with scanning electron microscope and grazing‐incidence small‐angle X‐ray scattering. Crystallinity is characterized by X‐ray diffraction. The multi‐dimensional characterization results suggest that cassiterite SnO2 with spherical, cylindrical, and vesicular pore structures are obtained. The variation of the film morphology is governed by the preferential affinity of the utilized solvent mixture and the hydrogen bond interaction between the employed cycloether and H2O molecules in the solution.
Uniform SnO2 thin films with various morphologies are synthesized through a facile block copolymer‐assisted sol–gel method. The structure transition mechanism of the thin films is explained by the preferential affinity of the solvent for a certain block and the hydrogen bond interactions.