Sodium niobate nanowire and its piezoelectricity

Nanowires of crystalline orthorhombic sodium niobate (NaNbO3) with diameters of approximately 100 nm and lengths of several to hundreds of microns, as well as cubes with edges of lengths of hundreds of nanometers were obtained by reacting niobium oxide (Nb2O5) with 10 and 12.5 M NaOH solutions, respectively. The microstructures of the synthesized wiry and cubic piezoelectric materials were investigated, and the details of the reactions were elucidated as well. The piezoelectricity of individual NaNbO3 (Pbma) nanowires was confirmed by piezoresponse force microscopy, and an effective piezoelectric coefficient along the vertical direction of around a few pm/V was obtained. To our knowledge, the present work is the first report of the preparation of NaNbO3 nanowires as well as the determination of piezoelectricity.