A generalized strategy for synthesizing crystalline bismuth-containing nanomaterials

Abstract

Bismuth oxide and its derivatives are promising materials that have applications varying from catalysis to energy-storage devices. Most of these applications benefit from the creation of crystalline nanostructures. Herein, we present a simple and fast polymer-assisted precipitation method to synthesize various crystalline bismuth oxide nanomaterials, including bismuth oxide (Bi₂O₃) microrods, bismuth-transition metal mixed oxide (Bi_xM_yO_z, M = V, Cr, Mo, or W) nanoparticles/rods, and bismuth oxyhalide (BiOX, X = Cl, Br, or I) nanoplates. All these materials are semiconductors with bandgaps in the range of 1.76–3.43 eV. This strategy can also be used to fabricate nanostructured composites (e.g., bismuth vanadate nanoparticles on BiOX nanosheets), copper oxide nanoparticles, and potentially other metal oxide nanomaterials.