Morphology evolution and photoluminescence of barium molybdate controlled by poly (sodium-4-styrenesulfonate)

An evolutionary morphology of BaMoO4 from spheres to octahedra was successfully synthesized via a biomineralization method under the control of poly (sodium 4-styrene-sulfonate) (PSS) at room temperature. The as-prepared precipitates were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) and photoluminescence (PL) spectrometer. A possible formation mechanism of BaMoO4 crystals with different morphologies was proposed. PSS complexes Ba2+ first, then simplifies the nucleation process. It controls the morphology and size of crystals by adjusting the oriented growth direction. The PL spectra exhibited a strong blue emission. We found that surface defects, crystalline degree, particle size and morphology were crucial to the PL intensity of BaMoO4.