Title: Alternating current conduction studies of hybrid nanocomposite at room temperature

Authors: T. Chandrasekhar; R. Megha; Y.T. Ravi Kiran; C.H.V.V. Ramana; D.K. Mishra; A.B.V. Kiran Kumar

Addresses: Department of Electronics, Government Science College, Chitradurga, Karnataka, India ' Department of PG Studies and Research in Physics, Government Science College, Chitradurga, Karnataka, India ' Department of PG Studies and Research in Physics, Government Science College, Chitradurga, Karnataka, India ' Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering Science, University of Johannesburg, Auckland Park Campus, Johannesburg, South Africa ' Department of Physics, Faculty of Engineering and Technology (ITER), Siksha 'O' Anusandhan (Deemed to be University), Bhubaneswar 751030, Odisha, India ' Amity Institute of Nanotechnology, J-2 Block, Amity University, Sector-125, Noida-201303, NCR, India

Abstract: Polyaniline (PANI) and polyaniline-yttrium oxide (PANI-Y₂O₃) hybrid nanocomposite were synthesised separately by simple chemical polymerisation method and then they were structurally characterised by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), x-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) techniques. The alternate current (AC) conduction parameters of PANI and the nanocomposite were comparatively studied in the frequency range 100 Hz-1 MHz at room temperature. The AC conduction results were interpreted as power law of frequency and the frequency exponent s was found to lie in the range 0 < s < 1. Decrease in ac conductivity of the nanocomposite as compared to pristine PANI because of decreased delocalisation of electronic states in the band gap of the nanocomposite due to the presence of Y₂O₃ in it was observed.

Keywords: polyaniline; yttrium oxide; polymer nanocomposites; AC conductivity; correlated barrier hopping.

DOI: 10.1504/IJNBM.2017.090115

International Journal of Nano and Biomaterials, 2017 Vol.7 No.2, pp.71 - 84

Received: 24 Mar 2017
Accepted: 29 Aug 2017
Published online: 28 Feb 2018 *

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