Complexing reagent-assisted microwave synthesis of uniform and monodisperse disk-like CeF3 particles

Highly uniform and monodisperse disk-like CeF3 particles with diameter about 230 nm and thickness about 76 nm were successfully synthesized via a mild and facile microwave irradiation assisted by a complexing reagent, ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid disodium salt (Na2H2EDTA). The morphologies and crystal structure of the products were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), selected area electron diffraction (SAED) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). XRD patterns showed that the as-prepared CeF3 products have hexagonal structure and high crystallinity. SEM images showed that these disk-like CeF3 nanocrystals had rough surfaces which were covered with many sheet-like structures. It was found that the reaction time and the complexing reagent played crucial roles on formation of uniform disk-like CeF3 particles. A possible formation mechanism of the disk-like CeF3 particles was preliminarily presented.