Large-scale synthesis of In2O3 nanowires

In2O3 nanowires have been successfully fabricated on a large scale from indium particles by thermal evaporation at 1030 degreesC. The as-synthesized products were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). SEM and TEM images show that these nanowires are uniform with diameters of about 60-120 nm and lengths of about 15-25 mum. XRD and selected-area electron diffraction analysis together indicate that these In2O3 nanowires crystallize in a cubic structure of the bixbyite Mn2O3 (1) type (also called the C-type rare-earth oxide structure). The growth mechanism of these nanowires is also discussed.