Templated Growth of InP Nanocrystals with a Polytwistane Structure

Abstract

AbstractWe have synthesized InP nanocrystals of an unprecedented crystal phase at low temperature (35–100 °C) by templated growth of InP magic‐sized clusters. With the addition of stoichiometric equivalents of P(SiMe3)3 to the starting cluster, we demonstrate nanocrystal growth mediated through a partial dissolution and recrystallization pathway. This growth process was monitored using a combination of in situ UV/Vis and 31P NMR spectroscopy, revealing the intermediacy of smaller cluster species of higher symmetry. The nanocrystals that result from this templated growth exhibit a crystal structure that is neither zincblende nor wurtzite, and instead is derived from the original cluster. This structure is best described as a 3D polytwistane phase as deduced from a combination of X‐ray diffraction, Raman, and solid‐state NMR spectroscopy methods.