Characteristics of nano Ti-doped SnO₂ powders prepared by sol-gel method

Ti⁴⁺-doped SnO₂ nano-powders were prepared by the sol-gel process using tin tetrachloride and titanium tetrachloride as the starting materials. The crystallinity and purity of the powders were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and the size and distribution of Ti⁴⁺-doped SnO₂ grains were studied using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results show that Ti⁴⁺ has been successfully incorporated into the SnO₂ crystal lattice and the electrical conductivity of the doped materials improves significantly. © 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.