ISSN (Online) : 2319 - 8753 ISSN (Print) : 2347 - 6710 International Journal of Innovative Research in Science, Engineering and Technology An ISO 3297: 2007 Certified Organization Volume 4, Special Issue 1, February 2015 THIRD NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON ADVANCES IN CHEMISTRY (NCAC – 2015) On 18 th February 2015 Organized by Department of Chemistry, Easwari Engineering College (SRM Group of Institutions), Chennai-600089, India. Copyright to IJIRSET www.ijirset.com 9 Influence of ZnO Co-Doping On the Structural, Optical, and Antibacterial Properties of (Zn 1-2x ce x fe x ) O Nanoparticles J.Arul Mary 1 , J. Judith Vijaya 2 Catalysis & Nanomaterials Research Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, Loyola College (Autonomous), Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India 1, 2 ABSTRACT: Pure and co-doped ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized by microwave combustion method using urea as a fuel. Structural, optical, morphological and magnetic property was studied using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS), and photoluminescence (PL) spectra. X-ray diffraction measurements of the nanoparticles showed the same wurtzite hexagonal structure and preferential orientation along the c-axis. The scanning electron microscope image of the nanoparticles revealed an average particle size of 47-23 nm. The calculated results from DRS spectroscopy indicated that the band gap of the synthesized samples decreased with the increment of the concentration of co-dopant, which resulted in the red-shift. The photoluminescence (PL) studies revealed that violet, blue and green emissions. The well diffusion method was used for antibacterial activities of two Gram negative and three Gram positive bacterial pathogens. The doping with Ce and Fe by microwave method improves the antibacterial property. KEYWORDS: ZnO, Band gap, microwave combustion, semiconductors, ferromagnetism. I. INTRODUCTION Nanostructured materials offer promising opportunities for the enhanced and tailored properties for application in environmental catalysis, due to their unique physicochemical properties, caused by their nanosized dimensions and large surface/volume ratios [1]. Metal oxide nanostructures such as, TiO 2 , ZnO, CuO, SiO 2 , SnO 2 and MgO have shown great potential in biomedical sector, due to their tremendous properties at nano scale, such as, optical, catalytic and antibacterial properties. Among these metal oxides nanomaterials, ZnO is of special attention, due to its established use in healthcare products, UV blocking capability, biocompatibility and modest cost [2]. Microbial contamination is a serious issue in healthcare and food industry so that the development of antimicrobial agents and surface coatings has been attracting increasing attention in recent years [3]. Therefore, developments of nanostructures with antimicrobial properties are of extensive interest. Meanwhile, doping in ZnO alters the band-gap, optical, electrical, non-linear optical and magnetic properties. Among the dopants, transition and rare earth metals have gained much attention. T he microwave combustion method is a potential method for the production of technologically useful materials, as it has the advantages of time saving, low external energy consumption, self sustaining instantaneous reaction, and high yield of nanosized particles [4]. In the present study, we report the synthesis and characterization of undoped and Ce, Fe co-doped ZnO nanoparticles, and their antibacterial studies. II. EXPERIMENTAL PART ZnO powders were prepared with the addition of Fe and Ce of different molar ratios ((Zn 1−2x Fe x Co x ) O with x = 0.00, 0.01, 0.02, 0.03, 0.04 and 0.05) to ZnO. The precursors mixture in urea is dissolved in de-ionized water by using magnetic stirrer for 30 min, then poured into a crucible. After that, the crucible is placed into a microwave oven operating at 800 W for 8 min till the precursors solution mixture decomposes. When the solution reaches the point of