Synthesis of carbon coated silica nanowires

Carbon coated silica nanowire hybrid structures were directly synthesized by a chemical vapor deposition method using ethanol as the precursor. The morphology and structural properties of the nanostructures were investigated. It was found that, in the sample prepared at a relative lower temperature (1185 °C), the carbon shell was composed of orderly graphitic layers, whereas the carbon shell on those fabricated at higher temperature (1236 °C) was amorphous. Moreover, the thickness of the amorphous carbon shell increased with increasing reaction temperature and reaction time.