NaCl-assisted hydrothermal synthesis of high-quality crystalline α-MoO3 nanobelts

High-quality crystalline MoO3 nanobelts were successfully fabricated with a facile hydrothermal route by using common and inexpensive NaCl as a capping agent. The products are thoroughly characterized by the combination of different techniques. The results indicate that as-prepared MoO3 nanobelts have an orthorhombic crystal structure (alpha-MoO3) with growth preferential in the [001] direction, the size of the obtained MoO3 nanobelts ranges from 200 nm to 300 nm in width and micrometers in length. The effects of the amount of NaCl on the morphology and size of the resultant MoO3 were also investigated, it is clearly shown that the presence of appropriate amount of NaCl plays a crucial role in controlling the size and morphology of the obtained MoO3. (C) 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim