Synthesis of nanocrystalline Si particles from a solid-state reaction during a ball-milling process

Silicon particles with nanometric size were synthesized by mechanical milling using a high-energy ball miller. The Si nanoparticles, observed using Raman spectroscopy, were formed according to a solid-phase reaction between amorphous SiO2 and Al powders. The crystalline size was determined by fitting the Raman spectrum with a phonon confinement model. (C) 2003 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.