Catalyst-assisted vapor-liquid-solid growth of single-crystal Ga2O3 nanobelts

Mass production of quasi-one-dimensional gallium oxide nanobelts is accomplished through graphite-thermal reduction of a mixture of gallium oxide powders and SnO2 nanopowders under controlled experimental conditions. Sn nanoparticles are located at or close to the tips of the nanobelts and served as the catalyst for the nanobelt growth by a vapor-liquid-solid mechanism. The morphology and microstructure of the nanobelts were characterized by scanning electron microscopy and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The Ga2O3 nanobelts grow along the [104] direction, the widths ranged from several tens to several hundreds of nanometers, and the lengths ranged from several tens to several hundreds of micrometers. The growth of Ga2O3 nanobelts is initiated by Sn nanoparticles via a catalyst-assisted vapor-liquid-solid process, which makes it possible to control the sizes of Ga2O3 nanobelts.