Bi/Ti3C2Tx composites: Synthesis and enhanced nonlinear optical and electrochemical properties

The Bi/Ti 3 C 2 T x composites were synthesized by a hydrothermal method . Then the Bi/Ti 3 C 2 T x powder was dispersed into methyl methacrylate (MMA) to fabricate the (Bi/Ti 3 C 2 T x ) 2–6 /polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) organic glasses. The crystalline structure and phase of the Bi/Ti 3 C 2 T x were measured by the X-ray diffraction. The photoluminescence (PL) spectra and the electrochemical impedance spectra (EIS) of the Bi/Ti 3 C 2 T x were measured to prove the enhanced optical and electrical properties. The nonlinear optical (NLO) properties of the (Bi/Ti 3 C 2 T x ) 2–6 /PMMA organic glasses were investigated by the Z-scan technique. The (Bi/Ti 3 C 2 T x ) 2–6 /PMMA organic glasses exhibit the reverse saturable absorption (RSA) and self-defocusing effects. Compared to the (Bi) 2 /PMMA and (Ti 3 C 2 T x ) 2 /PMMA organic glasses, the (Bi/Ti 3 C 2 T x ) 2–6 /PMMA organic glasses exhibit the enhanced NLO properties. Among three different amount Bi/Ti 3 C 2 T x /PMMA organic glasses, (Bi/Ti 3 C 2 T x ) 4 /PMMA organic glass exhibits the strongest RSA and self-defocusing effects with β eff = (6.34 ± 1.90)× 10 2 cm·GW −1 and γ  = (–3.52 ± 0.07)× 10 −4 cm 2 ·GW −1 . The enhanced RSA and self-defocusing effect of the (Bi/Ti 3 C 2 T x ) 2–6 /PMMA organic glasses make them exhibit the excellent optical limiting (OL) performance. In addition, the Bi/Ti 3 C 2 T x composites show excellent electrochemical performance as an electrode material for energy storage systems. The resultant Bi/Ti 3 C 2 T x electrode yields a high specific capacity of 68.5 mAh·g −1 at a current density of 1 A·g −1 , which is approximately 4.2 and 6.1 times than those of the Bi and Ti 3 C 2 T x electrodes, respectively. The experimental results exhibit the Bi/Ti 3 C 2 T x is highly promising for energy storage and OL devices.