1D tellurium nanostructures: Photothermally assisted morphology-controlled synthesis and applications in preparing functional nanoscale materials

A facile visible-light-assisted solution-phase approach has been successfully developed to synthesize trigonal Te 1D nanostructures. By varying the relative amount of H2TeO3 and water-soluble polymers, wirelike, beltlike, tubular Te, and Te nanoparticle-joined 1D aggregates, as well as a novel thorny 1D assembly of Te nanothreads can be synthesized on a large scale. The diameter of the Te nanowires can be modulated by controlling the nucleation and growth process through modulation of the pH value of the reaction mixture. It is believed that the light irradiation and thermal effect play a significant role in this photothermally assisted technique. We have shown that the Te nanowires can be used as a template to prepare Pt-Te nanochains, where the composition of Pt in the Pt-Te 1D products can be modulated by adjusting the ratio of the Te nanowires and Pt salts. Preliminary optical investigations reveal that blue-violet emission of Te nanowires can be enhanced by the formation of defects or dislocations in the Te region through the galvanic replacement reaction between Te nanowires and H2PtCl6. In addition, we demonstrate that Te 1D nanostructures can be utilized to prepare Te at carbon-rich nanocables and carbonaceous nanotubes. Te-Pt at carbon-rich nanocables can also be fabricated using Te-Pt nanochains as the template. These Pt-Te nanochains and carbonaceous nanostructures are expected to find wide applications in electrochemistry, catalysis, fuel cells, sensors, and other fields. Furthermore, the successful Preparation of Te 1D nanostructures with abundant shapes, Pt-Te nanochains, and their carbonaceous composite nanomaterials will offer great opportunities to explore the dependence of novel properties of nanomaterials on their morphology and composition, regulate the photoconductivity of semiconductors, and also be essential for the manufacture of potential optoelectronic devices.