Synthesis and characterization of a heterobimetallic Cu–Zr complex for deposition of 1:1 CuZrO3–CuO composite thin films

Abstract A well-defined heterobimetallic complex, [Cu 4 Zr 2 ( μ 4 -O) 2 (dmae) 4 (OAc) 8 ]·2H 2 O 1 where dmae =  N , N -dimethylaminoethanolato and OAc = acetato, has been constructed by the chemical reaction of Cu(OAc) 2 ·2H 2 O with Zr(dmae) 4 in THF. Complex 1 was characterized by its melting point, elemental analysis, infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis and single crystal X-ray diffraction. X-ray crystallography shows that complex 1 crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P 21/ n with the cell dimensions a  = 14.7414(5), b  = 11.7378(4) and c  = 14.8196(5) A and β  = 94.826(2)°. The nature of the thermolysis of 1 showed its aptitude to give a 1:1 CuZrO 3 :CuO composite oxide material at 575 °C. The high solubility and stability of 1 in common organic solvents suggest its efficacy as a single source precursor (SSP) in the aerosol assisted chemical vapor deposition technique for the formation of a CuZrO 3 –CuO composite thin film on a soda lime glass substrate under an air atmosphere. Thin film properties, such as crystallinity, identification of deposited phases, surface morphology and chemical compositions were probed by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray analysis, which ascertained the evolution of good quality crystalline hemispherical architecture composite oxide thin films from 1 .