Shape control of anatase TiO2 nanoparticles by amino acids in a gel-sol system

Ellipsoidal anatase TiO2 nanoparticles of different aspect ratios were obtained by the gel-sol method in the presence of amino acids in which the resulting particles were basically single crystals, but highly rough surfaces or partly polycrystalline structures were observed with a high concentration of glutamic acid or aspartic acid.