Growth of SiC nanorods at low temperature

Cubic-phase SiC (beta-SiC) nanorods were synthesized through a one-step reaction under pressure at 400 degrees C by which the crystalline product can be obtained directly without annealing at high temperature. The reaction was carried out in an autoclave by using SiCl4 and CCl4 as reactants and metal Na as coreductant. The x-ray diffraction pattern indicates the formation of beta-SiC and x-ray photoelectron spectra display the stoichiometric relation between Si and C. Transmission electron microscopy images reveal that the product consists of nanorods with diameters from 10 to 40 nm and lengths up to several micrometers. (C) 1999 American Institute of Physics. [S0003-6951(99)01430-8].