Green synthesis and photoluminescence property of β-SiC nanowires from rice husk silica and phenolic resin

This paper reports a new and green method to synthesize β-SiC nanowires (NWs) via carbothermic reduction of rice husk silica and phenolic resin without any catalyst or extra protective atmosphere, and their microstructure and room temperature photoluminescence (PL) property have been investigated. Results show that the as-synthesized β-SiC NWs have different morphologies (columnar, acicular and flaky shapes) with lengths up to dozens of micrometers and diameters in the range of 47–380 nm. They are surrounded by a thin amorphous SiO2 layer and grow along the [111] direction. Meanwhile, a few stacking faults and twin crystal phenomena can be observed in them. The PL spectrum of β-SiC NWs reveals a sharp and two broad ultraviolet light emission peaks at 563 nm, 539 nm and 662 nm, respectively, showing an excellent candidate for optoelectronic applications.