Synthesis and physical properties of ordered arrays of nanowires of complex functional oxides

We have synthesized ordered arrays of nanowires of complex oxides. The synthesis was done using nanoporous templates of anodized alumina (AAO). The synthesis involves sol-gel route using Polyethylene glycol. The synthesized nanowires can be made down to diameters of 35-40 nm. In this paper we report on nanowires of ferromagnetic La0.67Ca0.33MnO3 (LCMO). The nanowires characterized by a number of techniques, were found to be largely single crystalline and they have the nearly same crystal structure and stoichiometry as those of the bulk. We found LCMO nanowires retain ferromagnetism down to this size range (approximately 35-40 nm) with Tc (260 K) which is comparable to that of bulk.