Raman spectroscopy of visible-light photocatalyst – Nitrogen-doped titanium dioxide generated by irradiation with electron beam

A promising material in medicine, optoelectronics, catalysis and photophysics, nitrogen-doped titanium dioxide, is investigated by means of vibrational spectroscopies: Raman and UV–Vis. The synthesis of N-doped TiO2 has been accomplished by oxidizing or reducing process either through chemical doping, and calcination or chemical doping enhanced by electron beam irradiation (EB). When ionizing radiation interacts with the polymorphic crystalline structure of TiO2 mixed with N-dopants (urea) active species such as free radicals are produced, thereby initiating chemical reactions that result in N-doping of the crystalline structure of TiO2. We have compared efficiency of doping by calcination and EB using Raman spectroscopy.