Synthesis and characterization of zinc oxide nanoparticles doped with divalent manganese by green route using plant extract

This work describes a novel green and ecofriendly technique for manufacture of pure and metal doped zinc oxide nanoparticles utilising aloe vera plant extract. The microwave approach was used to biosynthesize pure and 1.5 wt% Mg doped nanostructured zinc oxide utilising high purity metal nitrates and aloe vera plant extract. Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS), X-ray diffraction method (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), High resolution scanning electron microscope (HR-SEM), and Photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy were used to characterise the synthesized doped zinc oxide nanoparicles. XRD analyses supported the formation of the hexagonal wurtzite structure in zinc oxide. The FT-IR method also supported the creation of the zinc oxide phase. DRS and PL were used to determine the optical characteristics. The band gap of 1.5 wt% Mg doped zinc oxide was found to be greater than that of pure zinc oxide.