Figure 9: Photonic properties of SiCN/BN nanocomposites.

(a–c) The UV-Vis diffusing reflectance spectra of BN, SiC and SiCN/BN nanoparticles are shown, respectively. The inset of (a) is the FFT pattern for the SiCN nanowires; the inset of (c) is the simulation diagram of SiCN−BN core–shell heterostructure. The optical bandgap is estimated around 4.4 eV through the linear fitting in the bottom panel. (d) and (e) The emission from SiCN/BN nanocomposite and SiC nanoparticles on excitation at 380 nm, respectively. (f) A micrograph showing fluorescence lifetime measurements for SiCN/BN nanocomposite and SiC nanoparticle. A variation in lifetime between 1.94 (black) and 4.49 ns (colorized) is attributed toSiC and SiCN/BN nanocomposite, respectively. It is possibly arising from the morphological differences between the SiC(N)−BN core−shell structures and the SiC nanoparticle.