Ambient-stable tetragonal phase in silver nanostructures

Yugang Sun (), Yang Ren, Yuzi Liu, Jianguo Wen, John S. Okasinski and Dean J. Miller
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Yugang Sun: Center for Nanoscale Materials, Argonne National Laboratory
Yang Ren: Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory
Yuzi Liu: Center for Nanoscale Materials, Argonne National Laboratory
Jianguo Wen: Electron Microscopy Center, Argonne National Laboratory
John S. Okasinski: Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory
Dean J. Miller: Electron Microscopy Center, Argonne National Laboratory

Nature Communications, 2012, vol. 3, issue 1, 1-6

Abstract: Abstract Crystallization of noble metal atoms usually leads to the highly symmetric face-centred cubic phase that represents the thermodynamically stable structure. Introducing defective microstructures into a metal crystal lattice may induce distortions to form non-face-centered cubic phases when the lateral dimensions of objects decrease down to nanometre scale. However, stable non-face-centered cubic phases have not been reported in noble metal nanoparticles. Here we report that a stable body-centred tetragonal phase is observed in silver nanoparticles with fivefold twinning even at ambient conditions. The body-centered tetragonal phase originates from the distortion of cubic silver lattices due to internal strains in the twinned nanoparticles. The lattice distortion in the centre of such a nanoparticle is larger than that in the surfaces, indicating that the nanoparticle is composed of a highly strained core encapsulated in a less-strained sheath that helps stabilize the strained core.

Date: 2012
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DOI: 10.1038/ncomms1963

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