Fabrication of crystalline \(\hbox {Sb}_{2}\hbox {S}_{3}\) sheaf structure composed of nanorods by a hot-injection method

Herein, we demonstrate a hot-injection method towards the fabrication of $$\hbox {Sb}_{2}\hbox {S}_{3}$$. The evolution from amorphous $$\hbox {Sb}_{2}\hbox {S}_{3}$$ nanoparticles to a sheaf of $$\hbox {Sb}_{2}\hbox {S}_{3}$$ nanorods cross-linked together occurring with the increase of reaction temperature and time is studied. The structural, compositional and morphological features of $$\hbox {Sb}_{2}\hbox {S}_{3}$$ products indicate the formation of crystalline $$\hbox {Sb}_{2}\hbox {S}_{3}$$ with orthorhombic phase and high purity. As the reaction proceeds, it can be observed that the individual nanorod grows along the elongated direction (c-axis), and it is noteworthy that its round cross-section could develop into the rectangular cross-section subsequently. In this study we also propose a possible formation mechanism for the growth process of $$\hbox {Sb}_{2}\hbox {S}_{3}$$, and it reveals that the present hot-injection could provide an ideal growth environment for synthesizing the nanostructured materials by optimizing the experimental parameters.