A facile single-step method was adopted to synthesize gold-modified copperdoped titania nanocomposites. Physicochemical properties of the synthesized material were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, photoluminescence (PL), and TEM-based techniques. Our characterizations show that the material consisted of anatase-phase qausi-spherical titania nanoparticles (NPs), with 3–4-nm gold particles anchored on titania surface. According to diffuse UV-visible spectroscopic analysis, gold-modified copper-doped titania shows enhanced absorption in the visible-light spectrum compared with copper-doped titania and pure titania. Furthermore, a decrease in PL emission intensity is observed, and this is due to decreased electron–hole recombination, which is an attribute desired for the enhancement of photocatalytic activity. Our present results highlight that these nanocomposites could be used as a photocatalyst for various applications in conjunction with visible solar radiation. The surface modifications make this material for many applications such as gas sensing and photodetection.
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