Spincoated MoO3 nanostructured thinly rods: An insight into effect of annealing temperature on physical properties and antibacterial activity against urinary tract pathogens

Abstract

Recently, the use of nanostructured material has continued to gain huge recognition in healthcare-related fields owing to their strong biological activity in the prevention of bacterial growth, thus minimizing the spread of bacterial infections. In this current research, we evaluated the effect of annealing temperature on some surface properties and antimicrobial efficacy of molybdenum trioxide (MoO₃) nanostructure against two urinary tract infections (UTIs) pathogens. Some surface structural investigation of the samples revealed an amorphous nestlike MoO₃ nanoparticle which exhibited a phase change into well-defined nanorods upon annealing. The deposited films’ average crystallite sizes were found within the range of 35.4 to 52.1 nm depending on annealing temperature. Optical studies from UV–visible solar spectra revealed the deposited MoO₃ film exhibited tuneable optical band structure with band-gap and Urbach energy values between 2.90 to 3.21 eV and 0.88 to 0.90 eV, respectively, depending on annealing temperature. The antimicrobial action of MoO₃-coated films towards the Gram-positive (E. feacalis) and Gram-negative (E. coli) UTI bacteria pathogens revealed great efficiency that decreased with an increase in annealing temperature. Moreover, superior activity was recorded against Gram-positive bacteria when compared to Gram-negative bacteria. These results strongly indicate the use of MoO₃ nanostructure as a potential antimicrobial agent for the control of urinary tract infections. The study reaffirmed surface microstructure and optical band structure of MoO₃ film can be tailored by subjecting it to some deposition heat treatments. It also unveiled the antimicrobial potencies of the spincoated MoO₃ nanoparticles can be tailored via annealing processes.