Is there lattice contraction in multicomponent metal oxides? Case study for GdVO 4 :Eu 3+ nanoparticles

Metal oxide nanomaterials have been found to have great potential for diverse applications due to their unique relationships between structure and properties. Lattice expansion as particle size reduces was previously considered to be general for metal oxide nanomaterials. It is now a great challenge to see if lattice contraction could be induced by the size effect for metal oxide nanomaterials. ABO 4 metal oxides (e.g., CaWO 4 , GdVO 4 , and CdWO 4 ) are some of the most important functional materials with many applications, while such oxides at the nanoscale are never reported to show a lattice contraction. This work presents a first report on the variation from lattice expansion to lattice contraction by tuning the microstructures of GdVO 4 :Eu 3+ nanocrystals. A hydrothermal method was adopted to synthesize GdVO 4 :Eu 3+ nanocrystals, and then these nanoparticles were calcined at 600 ° C in air. It is f...

Liusai Yang, Liping Li, Minglei Zhao, Chaochao Fu and Guangshe Li

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