GeO2 nanostructures fabricated by heating of Ge powders: Pt-catalyzed growth, structure, and photoluminescence

One-dimensional (1D) nanostructures of germanium dioxide (GeO2) have been synthesized by means of a Pt-catalyzed process. Pure Ge powders were evaporated at 950 °C. The products were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. The obtained GeO2 nanostructures were crystalline with a hexagonal structure. We have proposed the possible growth mechanism, with particular attention to the role of platinum (Pt). PL measurement with a Gaussian fitting exhibited visible light emission bands centered at 406, 444, 533, and 663 nm.