Molten fluoride salt-assisted synthesis of mxenes as potential material for nonlinear photonic devices and applications / Aizuddin Ahmad Kamely

• Main Author: Aizuddin Ahmad , Kamely
• Format: Thesis
• Published: 2022
• Subjects: Q Science (General); QC Physics
• Online Access: http://studentsrepo.um.edu.my/14747/1/Aizuddin.pdf; http://studentsrepo.um.edu.my/14747/2/Aizuddin_Ahmad.pdf; http://studentsrepo.um.edu.my/14747/
• Institution: Universiti Malaya

Group 4–6 transition metal carbides and nitrides were explored in the twentieth century as promising materials. Their catalytic behavior were founded in the 1970s that led to the exploration towards energy storage applications. Henceforth, a number of nanostructure designs have been introduced, taking tiny steps to enhance the surface area and performance of transition metal carbides and nitrides. The breakthrough in the area took place in 2011 by the discovery of the first two-dimensional (2D) titanium carbide (Ti3C2Tx) that give birth to a family of 2D transition metal carbides and nitrides, named MXenes (pronounced “maxines”). MXenes have become a large and quickly growing family of 2D materials ever since. In comparison to the other 2D materials, MXenes is relatively new and has not been extensively studied, especially in photonics field. The aim of this study is to synthesize MXenes from precursor MAX phases in non-standard method due to the harmful properties of hydrofluoric acid (HF) used in the standard method. A mixture of molten fluoride salt and acid (HF-forming etchant) is utilized instead, with different concentration, temperature, time, and procedures depending on the type of MXenes. Three different MXenes are being investigated in this work, titanium carbide (Ti2C), vanadium carbide (V2C), and niobium carbide (Nb2C), all three compounds with similar chemical ratio. Preparations and characterizations of the MXenes are described in detail such as lateral size, elemental composition, linear absorption, and nonlinear absorption. Besides synthesis, the MXenes are integrated in fiber laser systems, comprising of pulsed fiber laser, four wave mixing, and all-optical modulation to explore the performance. The optical response of the three MXenes are recorded with typical measurement according to each configuration. The studies commenced and the findings obtained in this study can contribute to the advancement of MXenes in photonics application.