Atomic-dimensional film of TiO 2- xand its quantum size effect UV–VIS, XPS, SEM and TEM study

Abstract

An atomic-dimensional titanium oxide film has been prepared by the sol–gel method and its thickness was determined to be ca. 5 Å. The UV–VIS spectrum shows that the absorption edges for the film are strongly blue shifted. Measurement of the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) binding energies for Ti 2p, O 1s and Si 2p, demonstrates that there are different Ti species in the film and that there exists a strong interaction between the as-prepared film and the quartz substrate. These data provide a detailed understanding of the transformation between the different titanium oxide species during calcination.