Structure, optical, and surface characteristics of irradiated PEO/Gd₂O₃ for optoelectronics

In this work, the polyethylene oxide (PEO) polymer and nanofiller gadolinium oxide (Gd₂O₃) are combined to produce the composite (PEO/Gd₂O₃) for application in optical materials with high flexibility. The composites were successfully fabricated using the solution-casting preparation method and characterized by using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscope techniques. Then, the samples were irradiated by the cold cathode ion source with hydrogen (H⁺) ion fluence of 3 × 10¹⁷, 6 × 10¹⁷, and 9 × 10¹⁷ ions/cm². The ultraviolet–visible method is used to study the optical behaviour of the irradiated composite in frequency range of 200–1100 nm. The dispersion energy changed from 1.62 eV for PEO/Gd₂O₃ to 1.60, 1.58, and 1.54 eV for the irradiated films by 3 × 10¹⁷, 6 × 10¹⁷, and 9 × 10¹⁷ ions/cm², respectively. In addition, the oscillation energy E_O changed from 6.93 eV for PEO/Gd₂O₃ to 6.19, 6.61, and 6.54 eV, respectively. These modifications of the irradiated films result from a combination of the amorphization, defect formation, and polymer–nanoparticle interactions, making the irradiated PEO/Gd₂O₃ nanocomposite more suitable for optoelectronics devices.