Oxygen, nitrogen co-doped molybdenum disulphide nanoflowers for an excellent antifungal activity

Abstract

The engineering of pristine low dimensional materials towards society-needed functionalities is the driving force for cultivation the field of nano–bio research. Herein, the molybdenum disulphide structure has been ornamented with nitrogen as well as oxygen atoms by a facile chemical route. This O,N co-doped MoS₂ nanoflower sample along with only-N-doped MoS₂ samples were investigated structurally and chemically to ascertain the successful attachment of the dopant atoms and its associated changes in the structure. While positron annihilation spectroscopy demonstrates detailed defect pictures of these two variants with not much of a difference, the electron paramagnetic resonance displays the adequacy of Mo⁵⁺ defect states in O,N co-doped MoS₂ compared to the only-N-doped MoS₂ sample. Moreover, this O,N co-doped MoS₂ exhibits outstanding antifungal activities towards two harmful fungal pathogens, namely, Alternaria alternata and Fusarium oxysporum, in dark as well as in light. MoS₂, which otherwise showed no antifungal growth inhibition whatsoever, can thus be promoted to get exalted antifungal performance by gradual incorporation of nitrogen and oxygen atoms within the lattice of MoS₂. This study establishes a new pathway to design better candidates for antifungal activity with lesser chances of antimicrobial resistance through suitable elemental engineering and is a prime need for our society to cope with the growing unforeseen dangers.