Synergistic Effect of In2O3-rGO Hybrid Composites for Electrochemical Applications

In the present paper, the interaction between metal oxide nanoparticles and carbon materials was studied, and the results showed a synergetic effect, leading to an improvement in the properties of the obtained hybrid composites. The In2O3 NPs were prepared by the precipitation method and thermal treatment at 550 °C. The composites were obtained using an ex situ method, by mixing the In2O3 NPs with reduced oxide graphene (rGO) in a ratio of 10:1. The structural, morphological, and chemical composition studies of the In2O3 NPs and In2O3-rGO composites were investigates by FTIR and EDX spectroscopy, SEM microscopy, and XRD analysis. These techniques have highlighted the obtaining of In2O3 of high purity, and crystallinity, with the mean particle size in the range of 8–25 nm, but also, the dispersion of In2O3 NPs onto rGO sheets. We examined the influence of the In2O3 nanostructure morphology and In2O3-rGO composites on the electrochemical properties using cyclic voltammetry. The surface properties of the In2O3 and composite films were studied by contact angles, which indicate the maintenance of the hydrophilic nature. The obtained results establish the synergy between the main components to form In2O3-rGO, which can be used for the development of biosensors to enhance the device performance.