Synthesis of a Series of Single-crystalline La_(1-x)Ca_xMnO_3 Nanowires by Hydrothermal Method

A series of single-crystalline La1-xCaxMnO3 nanowires were successfully prepared by a hy-drothermal method. X-ray diffraction (XRD) results demonstrate that the La1-xCaxMnO3 nanowires have orthorhombic perovskite structure without any impurity phases. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) images clearly show that the as-synthesized samples are made up of large quantities of single crystal nanowires with lengths ranging from several to several tens of micrometers and uniform diameter (about 90nm). The high-resolution transmission electron microscope(HRTEM) investigations of La0.5Ca0.5MnO3 nanowires indicate that the nanowires have very clean surfaces without any defects and grow along 100 direction. The result of magnetic measurement indicates that the La0.5Ca0.5MnO3 nanowires have an enhanced Tc due to the shrinkage of unit cell volume and shape anisotropy.