Temperature dependence of dc electrical conductivity of activated carbon-metal oxide nanocomposites. Some insight into conduction mechanisms

From a commercial activated carbon (AC) and six metal oxide (Al2O3, Fe2O3, SnO2, TiO2, WO3 and ZnO) precursors, two series of AC-metal oxide nanocomposites are prepared by wet impregnation, oven-drying at 120 °C, and subsequent heat treatment at 200 or 850 °C in inert atmosphere. The temperature-dependent dc electrical conductivity of AC and the as-prepared nanocomposites is measured from room temperature up to ca. 200 °C in air atmosphere by the four-probe method. The decrease in conductivity for the hybrid materials as compared to AC is the result of a complex interplay between several factors, including not only the intrinsic conductivity, crystallite size, content and chemical nature of the supported nanoparticles, which ultimately depend on the precursor and heat treatment temperature, but also the adsorption of oxygen and water from the surrounding atmosphere. The conductivity data are discussed in terms of a thermally activated process. In this regard, both AC and the prepared nanocomposites behave as semiconductors, and the temperature-dependent conductivity data have been interpreted on the basis of the classical model proposed by Mott and Davis. Because of its high content of heteroatoms, AC may be considered as a heavily doped semiconductor, so that conduction of thermally excited carriers via acceptor or donor levels is expected to be the dominant mechanism. The activation energies for the hybrid materials suggest that the supported metal oxide nanoparticles strongly modify the electronic band structure of AC by introducing new trap levels in different positions along its band gap. Furthermore, the thermally activated conduction process satisfies the Meyer-Neldel rule, which is likely connected with the shift of the Fermi level due to the introduction of the different metal oxide nanoparticles in the AC matrix.