Nanomaterials: Small 17/2009

The cover image shows a scanning electron microscopy image of hydrothermally synthesized Cs-W/Mo hexagonal tungsten bronze oxide. The nanoscale shape of these functional W/Mo oxide materials can be easily steered with different alkali chloride additives that change the hydrothermal reaction kinetics. Their characteristic morphology emerges within a reaction time of less than one hour according to in situ energy-dispersive X-ray diffraction. This is a new option to control the morphology of nanostructured oxides via inorganic additives as an interesting alternative to organic surfactants or polymers as templates. The resulting particle shapes are a function of the reaction mechanism. For more information, please read the Communication “The Interplay of Crystallization Kinetics and Morphology in Nanostructured W/Mo Oxide Formation: An in situ Diffraction Study” by G. R. Patzke et al., beginning on page 1978.