title: Hierarchical, Ultrathin Single-Crystal Nanowires of CdS Conveniently Produced in Laser-Induced Thermal Field.
abstract: Hierarchical nanowires (HNWs) exhibit unique properties and have wide applications, while often suffering from imperfect structure. Herein, we report a facile strategy toward ultrathin CdS HNWs with monocrystal structure, where a continuous-wave (CW) Nd:YAG laser is employed to irradiate an oleic acid (OA) solution containing precursors and a light absorber. The high heating rate and large temperature gradient generated by the CW laser lead to the rapid formation of tiny zinc-blende CdS nanocrystals which then line up into nanowires with the help of OA molecules. Next, the nanowires experience a phase transformation from zinc-blende to wurtzite structure, and the transformation-induced stress creates terraces on their surface, which promotes the growth of side branches and eventually results in monocrystal HNWs with an ultrathin diameter of 24 nm. The one-step synthesis of HNWs is conducted in air and completes in just 40 s, thus being very simple and rapid. The prepared CdS HNWs display photocatalytic performance superior to their nanoparticle counterparts, thus showing promise for catalytic applications in the future.
authors.affiliation: †School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin University, 92 Weijin Road, Nankai District, Tianjin 300072, China.|‡Center for Functional Nanomaterials, Brookhaven National Laboratory, 735 Brookhaven Ave., Upton, New York 11973, United States.
authors.forename: Li-Li
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Han
authors.affiliation: ‡Center for Functional Nanomaterials, Brookhaven National Laboratory, 735 Brookhaven Ave., Upton, New York 11973, United States.
authors.forename: Huolin L
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Xin
authors.affiliation: §Institute of Innovative Science and Technology, Tokai University, 4-1-1 Kitakaname, Hiratsuka, Kanagawa 259-1292, Japan.|∥Aston Institute of Photonic Technologies, Aston University, Aston Triangle, Birmingham B4 7ET, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Sergei A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Kulinich
authors.affiliation: †School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin University, 92 Weijin Road, Nankai District, Tianjin 300072, China.
authors.forename: Li-Jun
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: †School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin University, 92 Weijin Road, Nankai District, Tianjin 300072, China.
authors.forename: Xi-Wen
authors.initials: XW
authors.lastname: Du