Preparation and characterization of copper(I) oxide nanoparticles dispersed in a polymer matrix

Nano-sized copper(I) oxide particles dispersed in nylon 11 thin films have been prepared by a thermal relaxation technique. The obtained composite films were characterized by XRD, HRTEM, XPS, AES and UV-VIS absorption spectroscopy. Upon heat treatment under air, metallic copper initially deposited on the nylon 11 surface penetrates into the bulk phase of the nylon 11 as Cu2O particles. The mean size of the Cu2O particles increased from 3.2 to 6.3 nm in diameter upon increasing the amount of Cu deposition. UV-VIS spectroscopy revealed that the absorption increased from as low as 600 nm with increasing the size and the concentration of the dispersed Cu2O particles.