Electrified Vapour Deposition at Ultrahigh Temperature and Atmospheric Pressure for Nanomaterials Synthesis

Author

Xizheng Wang
Ning Liu
Zhennan Huang
Ji Yang
Gang Chen
Boyang Li
Ti Xie
Sean Overa
Alexandra H. Brozena
Tangyuan Li
Farhan Mumtaz, Missouri University of Science and TechnologyFollow
Bohong Zhang
Ying Lin

Abstract

Vapour-phase synthesis methods have shown promise for the scalable synthesis of nanomaterials and coatings. However, the vaporization of different precursors for the synthesis of a broad nanomaterial space, particularly at atmospheric pressure, while maintaining compositional and structural control of the final product is challenging. Here we report the generation of an ultrahigh-temperature atomic vapour at atmospheric pressure based on electrified heating, for the growth of multi-elemental nanomaterials and thin films. This process relies on a reactor design whereby solid-state precursors are vaporized within a semi-confined space beneath an electrified heater that can reach ~3,000 K. The proximity of the heater rapidly breaks down the bonds of metal salt precursors and decomposes them into an atomic vapour that expands into a high-temperature (>2,000 K), highly reactive and high-flux vapour (10²¹–10²² atoms per cm² per second) that travels upwards in a directional flow. When mixed with entrained ambient gases, the highly reactive atomic species rapidly nucleate and grow into the desired final products, including alloys, oxides, sulfides and thin films, which can be deposited on a low-temperature substrate. This EVD approach can synthesize a broad range of functional nanomaterials at atmospheric pressure, including single-phase multi-elemental nanomaterials formed under thermodynamically non-equilibrium conditions. (Figure presented.)

Recommended Citation

X. Wang and N. Liu and Z. Huang and J. Yang and G. Chen and B. Li and T. Xie and S. Overa and A. H. Brozena and T. Li and F. Mumtaz and B. Zhang and Y. Lin, "Electrified Vapour Deposition at Ultrahigh Temperature and Atmospheric Pressure for Nanomaterials Synthesis," Nature Synthesis, Nature Research, Jan 2025.

The definitive version is available at https://doi.org/10.1038/s44160-025-00914-4

Department(s)

Electrical and Computer Engineering

Comments

Basic Energy Sciences, Grant DE-SC0025281

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

2731-0582

Document Type

Article - Journal

Document Version

Citation

File Type

text

Language(s)

English

Rights

© 2025 Nature Research, All rights reserved.

Publication Date

01 Jan 2025