nickel-silicide and nickel-monoxide

Nanoparticles of NiO, Ni or NiS have been obtained by solvothermal decomposition of different molecular precursors. The influence of several parameters, such as temperature, reaction time, solvent or capping agent used, in the nature and size of the obtained nanoparticle has been studied. The characterization by XRD and TEM techniques indicates that the nanoparticles of NiO exhibit average sizes of 3-8 nm, while those of Ni are in the 30-40 nm range. This difference in size has been attributed to the presence of molecules of the capping agent (n-octylamine or oleic acid) that surround the NiO nanoparticles but were not present in the nickel ones. The capping agent is, thus, preventing the aggregation of the smallest nanoparticles. The use of either a S-donor capping agent (4-mercaptopyridine) or a precursor having S-donor ligands (diethyldithiocarbamate) have led to the formation of NiS with average sizes around 35 nm. The magnetic properties of the nanoparticles have been studied, showing superparamagnetism and magnetic hysteresis below the blocking temperature, which, in time, is dependent of the particle size.

Topics: Crystallization; Hot Temperature; Macromolecular Substances; Materials Testing; Metal Nanoparticles; Molecular Conformation; Nickel; Particle Size; Silicon Compounds; Solvents; Surface Properties

We report a controllably reproducible and spontaneous growth of single-crystalline NiSix nanowires using NiOx/Ni seed layers during SiH4 chemical vapor deposition (CVD). We provide evidence that upon the reactions of SiH4 (vapor)-Ni seed layers (solid), the presence of the NiOx overlayer on Ni seed layers plays the key role to promote the spontaneous one-dimensional growth of NiSix single crystals without employing catalytic nanocrystals. Specifically, the spontaneous nanowire formation on the NiOx overlayer is understood within the frame of the SiH4 vapor-phase reaction with out-diffused Ni from the Ni underlayers, where the Ni diffusion is controlled by the NiOx overlayers for the limited nucleation. We show that single-crystalline NiSix nanowires by this self-organized fashion in our synthesis display a narrow diameter distribution, and their average length is set by the thickness of the Ni seed layers. We argue that our simple CVD method employing the bilayers of transition metal and their oxides as the seed layers can provide implication as the general synthetic route for the spontaneous growth of metal-silicide nanowires in large scales.

Topics: Adsorption; Crystallization; Electric Wiring; Macromolecular Substances; Materials Testing; Molecular Conformation; Nanotechnology; Nanotubes; Nickel; Particle Size; Silicon Compounds; Surface Properties