Publication details
Microtron electron beam enables post-synthetic defect engineering in ultrasmall ceria nanocrystals
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2026 |
| Type | Peer-reviewed scientific article |
| Magazine / Source | NANOSCALE ADVANCES |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| web | https://pubs.rsc.org/na/article/8/13/3666/1262948/Microtron-electron-beam-enables-post-synthetic |
| Doi | https://doi.org/10.1039/d6na00191b |
| Keywords | Decomposition; Defect engineering; Irradiation; Nanoparticles; Surface defects |
| Attached files | |
| Description | This work explores high-dose MeV beam irradiation as a dopant-free, post-synthetic route to tune defect-related properties in 2-3 nm colloidal CeO2 nanoparticles. Oleate/oleylamine-stabilised nanoceria were reproducibly prepared via degassing-controlled thermal decomposition in dibenzyl ether. After that, the CeO2 nanoparticles were irradiated with a 16.5 MeV beam for 10, 40, and 80 min with nominal absorbed doses up to 171 +/- 51 MGy while retaining crystalline fluorite cores. XPS and TEM-EELS analyses indicate the presence of irradiation-induced Ce3+/oxygen vacancy states, although spectral limitations prevent robust quantitative ranking of Ce3+. Surface-sensitive readouts show a non-monotonic response: the apparent optical bandgap narrows at the intermediate dose and partially recovers at the highest dose, accompanied by corresponding changes in the Urbach tail. In contrast, room-temperature magnetisation is substantially enhanced relative to pristine nanoceria and changes only weakly between the two highest-dose conditions. These observations suggest that defect centres persist within the nanoparticle volume even when the near-surface microstructure changes. |