Enhancing the Antibacterial Efficiency of ZnO Nanopowders Synthesized by Combustion Method Through Ag + Fe Co-doping

(Ag + Fe)-doped ZnO nanopowders have been synthesized using combustion method. Ag doping level was kept as 2 at.%, and Fe doping level was varied from 3 to 6 at.%, and the structural, optical, surface morphological, and antibacterial properties have been investigated. The structural studies show that ZnO/(Ag + Fe) nanopowders have hexagonal wurtzite structure with a preferential orientation along the (101) plane. The FE-SEM images indicate that there is a gradual decrease in the grain size with the increase in the doping level of Fe, and the TEM images are correlated well with FE-SEM images. The XPS profile clearly confirms the presence of expected elemental composition. Photoluminescence studies reveal the presence of extrinsic defects in the material. Antibacterial activity of Ag- and Fe-doped ZnO nanopowders against Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Vibrio Cholerae, and Staphylococcus aureus bacteria was also investigated.