Self-assembly of mono-crystalline NdF3 nanostructures during hydrothermal process

NdF3 nanoparticles were formed in neutral solution by hydrothermal process, which self-assembled into plate-built chains through oriented aggregations at the absence of any organic additive. The self-assembly consisted of two steps: firstly, nanoparticles sequentially aggregated together by coalescence mainly through (100) and (010) planes to form larger mono-crystalline plates, followed by Ostwald ripening to smooth their surfaces; secondly, the surface-smoothened plates stacked face to face with each other along (001) direction to construct the long chains. The oriented aggregation of nanocrystals in large scale proceeding in the absence of any organic component provides an attractive approach for fabricating novel architectures.