FWF: Microwave plasma synthesis of oxide nanocomposites

The microwave plasma technique offers key advantages in the synthesis of nanophase oxide particles with improved quality and unique possibilities for in-situ processing, in particular, the coating with ceramic or organic shells. In a microwave plasma, the precursor chemicals decompose at much lower temperatures than in conventional reactors allowing the production of small, non-agglomerated particles with a well defined size. At the Institute of Materials Physics this technique is applied for instance for the synthesis of nanocrystalline ZrO2-based materials.