Wurtzite Cu₂GeS₃ Nanocrystals: Phase- and Shape-Controlled Colloidal Synthesis

Parthiban Ramasamy; Jinkwon Kim

doi:10.1002/asia.201500199

Wurtzite Cu₂GeS₃ Nanocrystals: Phase- and Shape-Controlled Colloidal Synthesis

Chem Asian J. 2015 Jul;10(7):1468-73. doi: 10.1002/asia.201500199. Epub 2015 May 26.

Authors

Parthiban Ramasamy¹, Jinkwon Kim²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Chemistry and GETRC, Kongju National University, 182, Shinkwon, Kongju, 314-701, Chungnam, Republic of Korea.
² Department of Chemistry and GETRC, Kongju National University, 182, Shinkwon, Kongju, 314-701, Chungnam, Republic of Korea. jkim@kongju.ac.kr.

PMID: 25933437
DOI: 10.1002/asia.201500199

Abstract

The first colloidal synthesis of Cu2 GeS3 (CGS) nanocrystals with a thermodynamically metastable wurtzite crystal phase is reported. As a benefit of the sulfur precursors used in the synthesis, the shape of the as-synthesized wurtzite CGS nanocrystals can be controlled in the form of spherical nanoparticles, nanorectangles, and hollow nanorectangles. A detailed investigation into the effects of reaction conditions necessary to obtain phase-pure wurtzite CGS nanocrystals is presented. The choice of sulfur precursor and precursor injection temperature play a significant role in determining the crystal phase of the CGS nanocrystals. The band gap of the new wurtzite phase CGS was measured to be 1.76 eV and the CGS nanocrystals exhibited a good electrochemical photoresponse, which was indicative of their potential application as an active layer in the field of solar cells.

Keywords: colloids; crystal growth; nanoparticles; photochemistry; semiconductors.