Microwave-hydrothermal synthesis and structural characterization of PX-phase single-crystalline PbTiO3 nanowires by electron microscopy

PX-phase PbTiO3 (PT) nanowires were synthesized by microwave-hydrothermal process, and their microstructures were characterized by electron microscopy. The PX-phase PT nanowires exhibit acicular morphology with diameter sizes of 20-80 nm and length over 1 mu m. They tend to grow into a regular structure with parallel arrangement along their long axis in the [001] direction. Selected area electron diffraction patterns demonstrate the PX-phase PT nanowires with a 3-fold modulated periodicity along the [110] direction and a 4-fold modulated periodicity in the [001] direction. These results were also confirmed by the high-resolution transmission electron microscopy images. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.