17O Solid-State NMR Studies of Ta2O5 Nanorods.

Abstract

17O solid-state NMR spectroscopy was used to study the structure of Ta2O5 nanorods for the first time. Although the observations of oxygen ions in the “bulk” part of the Ta2O5 nanorods can be achieved with conventional high-temperature enrichment with 17O2, low-temperature isotopic labeling with H217O generated samples whose surfaces are selectively enriched, leading to surface-only detection of oxygen species. By applying 17O–1H double-resonance NMR techniques and 1H NMR spectroscopy, surface hydroxyl species and adsorbed water can also be studied. The results form the basis for further understanding of the structure–property relationship of Ta2O5 nanomaterials.