Study of the Effect of Synthesis Parameters on the Phase Formation Conditions for Indium, Gallium, and Zinc Oxides

A universal technique is described for producing nanostructured indium, gallium, and zinc oxides by the sol-gel method from respective metal nitrates with ethylene glycol as a complexing agent. The powder X-ray diffraction analysis of the samples obtained evidences that they do not contain noticeable concentrations of impurities, and their unit cell parameters are typical of these compounds. The microstructures of the samples are studied by electron microscopy. The band gap is determined based on diffuse reflectance of the samples using the Kubelka–Munk method, and it is shown that its boundaries correspond to the available literature data.