Nanostructured materials of various shape and dimension have aroused intensive interests, among which copper(I) sulfide (Cu₂S) nanomaterials are of particular prominence. In this work, various nanostructured Cu₂S have been facilely prepared via solventless thermolysis, with well-controlled shape and dimension determined by and inherited from the layered structures of the azobenzene-containing single-source copper thiolate mesogenic precursors. The precursors with longer alkyl tails exhibit highly ordered layered liquid crystalline mesophases and retain persistent order up to temperatures beyond the clearing points. Under non-vacuum inert atmosphere or with further elevated temperature, large undulations of the constrained lamellar space result in significantly enhanced diffusion, migration and mass transfer, thus leading to the morphologies changing from one-dimensional (1D) ultrathin nanowires into thickened nanorods then to discrete 2D nanodisks. Based on a variety of modern techniques, especially in situ variable-temperature small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), an extended universal “layered-precursor to lamellar-nanomaterial” (LPLM) mechanism has been proposed to account for the structural evolution of Cu₂S nanomaterials. Our findings provide a novel pathway with clearer mechanism for well-controlled preparation of metal chalcogenides of various dimension and shape. In particular, the ultrathin Cu₂S nanowires are anticipated to serve as fascinating semiconducting materials for various promising device applications.

中文翻译：

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探讨铜的尺寸和形状的控制机构（我）硫化物纳米材料通过溶剂热解基于介晶硫醇盐前体†

各种形状和尺寸的纳米结构材料引起了广泛的关注，其中硫化铜（I）（Cu ₂ S）纳米材料尤为突出。在这项工作中，各种纳米结构的Cu ₂ S可以通过以下方法方便地制备无溶剂热分解，具有良好控制的形状和尺寸，该形状和尺寸由含偶氮苯的单源硫醇铜介晶前体的层状结构确定并继承。具有较长烷基尾的前体表现出高度有序的层状液晶中间相，并且在超过澄清点的温度下仍保持持久的有序性。在非真空惰性气氛下或在温度进一步升高的情况下，受约束的层状空间的大量起伏会导致扩散，迁移和质量转移显着增强，从而导致形态从一维（1D）超细纳米线转变为增厚的纳米棒，然后变为离散的2D纳米磁盘。基于各种现代技术，尤其是原地提出了可变温度小角X射线散射（SAXS），一种扩展的通用“层状纳米材料的层状前体”（LPLM）机理，以说明Cu ₂ S纳米材料的结构演变。我们的发现为具有良好控制机制的各种尺寸和形状的金属硫属元素化物的制备提供了具有更清晰机制的新颖途径。特别地，预期超薄的Cu ₂ S纳米线可作为引人入胜的半导体材料，用于各种有前途的器件应用。