Microwave-Assisted Hydrothermal Synthesis of Sm2O3 Nanoparticles and their Optical Properties

Spherical Sm₂O₃ nanoparticles have been successfully synthesized by microwave-assisted hydrothermal technique in the condition of different microwave radiation power. The microstructure, morphology and optical properties of the samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), field emission transmission electron microscope (FETEM) and ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) spectrophotometry. The results showed that the precursors Sm (OH)₃ nanorods and SmOHCO₃ nanoparticles were obtained during microwave-assisted hydrothermal reaction and decomposed into spherical Sm₂O₃ nanoparticles after heat treatment. A potential mechanism of the formation of Sm₂O₃ nanoparticles is proposed. The UV-vis absorption spectra indicated that the samples had high ultraviolet absorption capacity and the energy gap was only 4.83 eV as the radiation power increased to 550 W.