Organic phase conversion of bulk (wurtzite) ZnO to nanophase (wurtzite and zinc blende) ZnO

• Published in: Solid state sciences Vol. 7; no. 12; pp. 1500 - 1505
• Main Authors: Snedeker, Lauren P., Risbud, Aditi S., Masala, Ombretta, Zhang, Jin Ping, Seshadri, Ram
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Paris Elsevier Masson SAS 01.12.2005; Elsevier
• Subjects: Condensed matter: structure, mechanical and thermal properties; Crystalline state (including molecular motions in solids); Crystallographic aspects of phase transformations; pressure effects; Exact sciences and technology; Nanophase materials; Physics; Structure of solids and liquids; crystallography; Zinc blende; Zinc oxide; Nanophase materials; Zinc oxide; Zinc blende; Pyrolysis; Inorganic compounds; Blende structure; Phase transformations; Transition element compounds; Binary compounds; XRD; SAED; High temperature; Nanostructures; Experimental study; Lattice parameters; Zinc oxides; II-VI semiconductors; Wurtzite structure; Zinc blende: Zinc oxide; Transparent material
• ISSN: 1293-2558; 1873-3085
• DOI: 10.1016/j.solidstatesciences.2005.08.020

We describe the all-organic phase conversion of bulk commercial ZnO in the wurtzite modification to sub-30 nm ZnO that we find to be partially in the zinc blende [F4¯3m, a=4.568(3) Å] modification. The conversion involves refluxing ZnO in 2,4-pentanedione (acetylacetone) at 413 K to form the zinc 2,4-pentanedionate, which is decomposed by heating at 573 K in an appropriate high-temperature solvent such as dibenzylether to form nanophase ZnO. This nanophase, partially zinc blende ZnO can also be obtained in a single step by heating commercial zinc 2,4-pentanedionate in refluxing dibenzylether. Thermodiffractometry suggests that the conversion of zinc blende ZnO to wurtzite ZnO commences near 650 K.