Synthesis and characterization of NiO-CdO composite materials towards photoconductive and antibacterial applications

This paper outlines the synthesis and characterization of NiO, CdO and NiO-CdO nanocomposites prepared by a simple soft chemical route. The thermal behavior, structure, surface morphology, elemental composition of the synthesized samples was characterized by TG-DTA, XRD, SEM, EDX and XPS analyses. The various functional groups present in the samples were identified by FTIR analysis. Photoconductive and antibacterial studies were performed to find the suitability of the composite in photoconductive sensor and pharmaceutical applications. Thermal studies confirm that the thermal decomposition of NiO, CdO and NiO-CdO nanocomposites occur at 332.9 °C, 325.8 °C and 334.5 °C, respectively. XRD studies confirm that the NiO and CdO nanopowders exhibit cubic crystal structure and diffraction peaks related to NiO and CdO were observed in the composite. The EDX and XPS spectra confirmed the presence of Ni, Cd and O in the composite. The optical and photoconductive results confirmed that the composite has properties intermediate between NiO and CdO nanopowders. The NiO, CdO and NiO-CdO nanocomposites showed enhanced antibacterial activities against S. aureus and K. pneumonia bacteria strains.