Controlled synthesis of β-SiC nanopowders with variable stoichiometry using inductively coupled plasma

In the growing field of nanomaterials, SiC nanoparticles arouse interest for numerous applications. The inductively coupled plasma (ICP) technique allows obtaining large amount of SiC nanopowders from cheap coarse SiC powders. In this paper, the effects on the SiC structure of the process pressure, the plasma gas composition, and the precursor nature are addressed. The powders were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman and fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and high resolution electron microscopy (HREM), chemical analyses, BET and photon correlation spectroscopy (PCS) measurements. Whatever the precursor (alpha- or beta-SiC), the nanoparticles were crystallised in the cubic beta-SiC phase, with average sizes in the 20-40 nm range. Few residual grains of precursor were observed, and the decarburization due to the reductive Ar-H-2 plasma lead to the appearance of Si nanograins. The stoichiometry of the final product was found to be controllable by the process pressure and the addition of methane.