Nanocrystalline intermetallic powders made by laser evaporation

摘要

A method of making intermetallic nanoparticles comprising subjecting a starting material to laser energy so as to form a vapor and condensing the vapor so as to form intermetallic nanoparticles. The starting material can be a mixture of pure elements or an alloy of two or more elements. The nanoparticles can be provided with a narrow size distribution with an average particle size of 2 to 100 nm, preferably 2 to 50 nm and more preferably 2 to 9 nm. The nanoparticles can be formed in a vacuum chamber wherein a temperature gradient is provided. The atmosphere in the chamber can be an inert atmosphere such as argon or a reactive atmosphere such as isobutene or oxygen. An electric field can be used to form filaments of the nanoparticles.