Synthesis of boron nitride nanowires

A chemical method has been developed for synthesizing boron nitride nanowires through the reaction of a mixture gas of nitrogen (N-2) and ammonia (NH3) over nanoscale alpha-FeB particles at 1100 degreesC. Boron content in the product comes from the alpha-FeB catalyst itself. Transmission electron microscopic image indicates an abundant quantity of BN nanowires with diameter about 20 nm and length up to several tens of microns. The product has also been characterized by high-resolution electron microscopy and electron energy loss spectrometer. The perfectly straight lattice fringes with an interlayer spacing of about 0.333 nm corresponding to d(0002) spacing of h-BN indicate that the BN nanowires are well crystallized. Also, a growth mechanism has been speculated. (C) 2002 American Institute of Physics.