Effects of ion beam on the electrical conductivity and surface characteristics of flexible PVA/TiO2 polymeric nanocomposites films

The present research examined the impacts of oxygen beam bombardment on PVA/TiO2 composites using cold cathode source with fluencies (3×1016, 6×1016 and 9×1016 ions/cm2 ). The X-ray diffraction (XRD) is verified the successful fabrication of PVA/TiO2 composites. In addition, surface free energy, work of adhesion, and contact angles were evaluated for both pure and treated PVA/TiO2 films. The drop in water contact angle from 68.37º to 52.12º was caused by an increase in ion beam fluence from 3×1016 ions/cm2 to 9×1016 ions/cm2 . And the surface energy increases from 41.45 to 55.97 mJ/m2 , with a rise in the adhesion work from 98.75 mJ/m2 to 116.33 mJ/m2 . In addition, the electrical conductivity of PVA/TiO2 was measured within the frequency range of 50-106 Hz. After the samples subjected to 9×1016 ions/cm2 , the conductivity of the PVA/TiO2 composite rose from 0.32×10-6 to 4.3×10-6 S/cm. The outcomes data showed that the electrical conductivity of the irradiated films were improved, which is important for different devices such batteries and supercapacitors.