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Abstract Modulation of band energies through size control offers new ways to control photoresponse and photoconversion efficiency of the solar cell. The P -type semiconductor of copper oxide is an important functional material used for photovoltaic cells. CuO is attractive as a selective solar absorber since it has high solar absorbance and a low thermal emittance. The present work describes the synthesis and characterization of semiconducting CuO nanoparticles via one-step, solid-state reaction in the presence of Polyethylene glycol 400 as size controlling agent for the preparation of CuO nanoparticles at different temperatures. Solid-state mechanochemical processing, which is not only a physical size reduction process in conventional milling but also a chemical reaction, is mechanically activated at the nanoscale during grinding. The present method is a simple and efficient method of preparing nanoparticles with high yield at low cost. The structural and chemical composition of the nanoparticles were analyzed by X-ray diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive spectrometer, respectively. Optical properties and band gap of CuO nanoparticles were studied by UV-Vis spectroscopy. These results showed that the band gap energy decreased with increase of annealing temperature, which can be attributed to the improvement in grain size of the samples.
Vidyasagar et al. (Fri,) studied this question.