Evaluations of the effects of the Nd:YAG laser on the structural, optical, spectral, and biological properties of uncoated and silver oxalate-coated mixed cadmium/cobalt oxalate

[Display omitted] •We investigate the effects of Nd:YAG laser exposure on Cd/Co and Ag/Cd/Co oxalates.•Laser treatment increases crystallite and particle sizes.•After laser treatment, the photoluminescence intensity decreases and the optical band gap increases.•The 1064 nm wavelength enhances antibacterial activity in distilled water. Two oxalate composites were synthesized: CdC2O4/CoC2O4 (oxalate A) and Ag2C2O4/CdC2O4/CoC2O4 (oxalate B). These composites were subsequently irradiated with an Nd:YAG laser at wavelengths of 532 nm and 1064 nm. The study aimed to investigate the effects of pulsed laser irradiation on the physical properties and antibacterial activity of these oxalates. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis revealed that both oxalate composites were polycrystalline. Laser irradiation led to an increase in average crystal size for both materials. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observations confirmed this trend, with a more pronounced effect observed at the longer wavelength of 1064 nm. Oxalate A exhibited a higher optical bandgap compared to oxalate B. Laser irradiation resulted in a bandgap increase for both materials. Photoluminescence peak intensity decreased due to the laser treatment. However, the presence of silver in oxalate B significantly enhanced the luminescence intensity. When examining antibacterial activity, the incorporation of silver into the oxalate composition demonstrated remarkable efficacy in eradicating bacteria and other deleterious microorganisms. Furthermore, the results showed that, under the assumption that all other laser parameters stayed the same; a laser wavelength of 1064 nm produced more effective results in distilled water than a wavelength of 532 nm.