Nucleation and growth concepts applied to the formation of a stoichiometric compound in a gas phase: The case of MgO smoke

Slavica Stankic , Maeva Cottura , Dominique Demaille (1) , Claudine Noguera (1) , Jacques Jupille

1 INSP - Institut des Nanosciences de Paris

Under well-controlled synthesis conditions, MgO was produced in powdered form by means of conventional metal combustion technique. Resulting so-called smoke nanoparticles consist of single crystallites with exceptionally regular cubic shape. We demonstrate that their size and distribution are strongly dependent on the synthesis parameters. The effect of the oxygen partial pressure on the synthesis has been systematically studied by transmission electron spectroscopy. It was shown that an increase in oxygen partial pressure leads to a decrease in MgO particle size. This is rationalized on the basis of the classical theory of nucleation and growth. More general applications of this approach are discussed. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Mots clés: Nanostructures; Nucleation; Growth from vapor; MgO; Oxide insulating materials

Domaines: Matière Condensée [cond-mat]

Slavica Stankic, Maeva Cottura, Dominique Demaille, Claudine Noguera, Jacques Jupille. Nucleation and growth concepts applied to the formation of a stoichiometric compound in a gas phase: The case of MgO smoke. Journal of Crystal Growth, 2011, 329 (1), pp.52-56. ⟨10.1016/j.jcrysgro.2011.05.029⟩. ⟨hal-01240944⟩