Kinetic impact of Pt seed morphology on the highly controlled growth of Ni-based nanostructuresElectronic supplementary information (ESI) available: TEM, HRTEM, BF-STEM and STEM-EDS characterization. See DOI: 10.1039/c5ra05814g

• Main Authors: Vázquez-Vázquez, Carmen, Sanlés-Sobrido, Marcos, Rodríguez-González, Benito, Spuch-Calvar, Miguel, Bañobre-López, Manuel, Rivas, José, Pérez-Lorenzo, Moisés, Salgueiriño, Verónica, Correa-Duarte, Miguel A
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 2046-2069
• DOI: 10.1039/c5ra05814g

A Pt seed-mediated growth method for the synthesis of Ni/NiO and Ni/Ni(OH) 2 nanocomposites has been designed so that the morphology and composition of the final materials can be kinetically tailored by a rational choice of the type of seed. Spherical and dendritic Pt nanoparticles provide rather different architectures depending on the different catalytic activity they can exert. Thus, the Pt nanoparticle's initial morphology establishes the conditions for the initial nickel deposition and consequently determines the subsequent autocatalytic growth of the magnetic nanocomposite. Pt seed morphology and reaction conditions reveal the autocatalytic nickel deposition kinetics as a critical factor in the tunability of morphology and composition of nickel-based nanostructures, offering a great opportunity to modulate the final properties of these materials. A Pt seed-mediated growth method for the synthesis of Ni/NiO and Ni/Ni(OH) 2 nanocomposites offers an unprecedented control over the morphological and compositional features of Ni-based nanostructures.