Structural, electrical and optical properties of sintered SnO2 pellets

Tin dioxide (SnO2) powder was prepared by the co-precipitation method using SnCl2 solution as a precursor. The powder was then pelletized and sintered. Structural characterization of the samples with XRD confirmed that all the pellets were of SnO2 having polycrystalline nature with the crystallite size of the order of 90 nm. SEM-EDAX was used to confirm the morphology and composition of the samples. The measurements of electrical properties were carried out in the frequency range of 100 Hz to 100 kHz at various fixed temperatures from 40 °C to 160 °C. The a.c. conductivity and the dielectric constant were found to be dependent on both frequency and temperature. The frequency and temperature dependent conduction properties of SnO2 are found to be in accordance with correlated barrier hoping model. Infrared and visible spectroscopic studies show that a strong vibration band characteristic of the SnO2 stretching mode was present at around 620 cm−1 and the samples exhibited optical transmittance in the visible range.