Structural influence on charge-carrier lifetimes in TiO2 powders studied by microwave absorption

A set-up for contactless transient photoconductivity measurements on powders by the Time Resolved Microwave Photoconductivity (TRMC) method has been realized. These measurements have been used as a tool for the investigation of excess charge-carrier lifetimes in TiO2 (anatase and rutile) powders. The influence of laser wavelength and intensity on TRMC decay shows the importance of the fast-recombination processes. The presence of a long time tail in the TRMC signals of the anatase modification of TiO2 is attributed to quenching of this recombination by hole-trapping at the surface. The influence of surface treatment by ethanol and water on TRMC decay evidences that dominant effects are bulk recombination in rutile and surface trapping in anatase. The influence of doping in rutile shows that increasing the doping rate accelerates the decay whatever the doping type is. The doping element acts as an impurity favoring recombination by creation of structural defects. The influence of thermal treatment in anatase shows that increasing the thermal treatment temperature increases the lifetimes. High crystalline quality leads to long charge-carrier lifetimes. The results are discussed in view of their relevance for photocatalysis.