Oriented attachment of nanocrystals

PbSe and cubic ZnS nanowires as well as complex one-dimensional nanostructures can be obtained in solution through oriented attachment of nanocrystals. In Fig. 23, star-shaped PbSe nanocrystals and branched nanowires are shown. 

Oriented attachment of nanocrystals is employed to fabricate one-dimensional as well as complex nanostructures. Thus, nanotubes and nanowires of II-VI semiconductors have been synthesized using surfactants [199]. Oriented attachment-like... 

By oriented attachment, Yu et al. [8] could obtain ZnS nanorods with cubic blend structure, in which the (11 1) planes of the component ZnS nanocrystals are nearly perfectly aligned. Pradhan et al. [9] have reported the formation of colloidal CdSe quantum wires by the oriented attachment of magic-sized clusters of CdSe. 

Jin and co-workers obtained 1.5-nm ultra-thin ceria nanorods from a cerium stearate precursor. The reaction was carried up at 270°C in 1-octadecene with the addition of 1-octadecanol. The authors ascribed the formation of nanorods to the oriented attachment of ultra-small ceria nanocrystals grown in the initial stage of the reaction. 

Synthesis forms a vital aspect of the science of nanomaterials. In this context, chemical methods have proved to be more effective and versatile than physical methods and have therefore, been employed widely to synthesize a variety of nanomaterials, including zero-dimensional nanocrystals, one-dimensional nanowircs and nanotubes as well as two-dimensional nanofilms and nanowalls. Chemical synthesis of inorganic nanomaterials has been pursued vigorously in the last few years and in this article we provide a perspective on the present status of the subject. The article includes a discussion of nanocrystals and nanowires of metals, oxides, chalcogenides and pnictides. In addition, inorganic nanotubes and nanowalls have been reviewed. Some aspects of core-shell particles, oriented attachment and the use of liquid-liquid interfaces are also presented. 

Perm RL, Banfield JF, Kerrick, DM (1999) TEM investigation of Lewiston, Idaho Fibrolite Implications for grain boundary energetics and A SiOs phase relations. Am Mineral 84 152-159 Perm RL, Banfield JF (1998a) Imperfect oriented attachment Dislocation generation in defect-free nanocrystals. Science 281 969-971... 

Several papers have discussed the role of oriented attachment in the anisotropic growth of nanocrystals. A recent paper by Cho and coauthors [50] discusses the oriented attachment process as the main mechanism involved in the construction of anisotropic PbSe nanocrystals in several shapes. The authors used the proposition of... 

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