Growth mechanisms of fiber-like and dendrite-like boron in a Cu melt

Abstract

The morphology evolution and growth mechanisms of boron in a Cu melt have been studied in this work. It was found that there are two different morphologies of eutectic boron in a Cu melt at ambient pressure, i.e. fiber-like and dendrite-like. These two morphologies have different crystal structures and growth mechanisms. The fiber-like boron should be single crystal and has an alpha-tetragonal structure. The dendrite-like boron should have an alpha-rhombohedral structure, and twin growth facilitates its dendrite growth. The synthesis temperature is a factor that induces the morphology change of eutectic boron. In addition, boron nanowires can be prepared from the fiber-like eutectic boron by increasing the cooling rate of the Cu melt.