Synthesis of MgO Hierarchical Nanostructures Controlled by the Supersaturation Ratio

Abstract

A novel kind of hierarchical MgO nanostructure with bundles of nanowires, which were aligned onto six exposed planes of central cubic particles, was successfully synthesized by using a mixture of Mg, MgO, and carbon powder as source materials through the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method. The evolution of the morphology of this kind of hierarchical structure was also observed via changing experimental parameters, such as reacting temperature and reacting time. The growth process was discussed at length, and a two-step growth model was proposed. In the growth process, the supersaturation ratio was considered a crucial factor in determining the growth behavior of reagent species. Two comparative experiments were also performed to support our proposed growth model. Our experiments developed a new route to prepare hierarchical nanostructures through modulating the supersaturation ratio by source. Furthermore, these obtained hierarchical nanostructures look like they have a potential for acting as functio...