Preparation of submicrometer-sized copper and silver crystallites by a facile solvothermal complexation–reduction route

Pure submicrometer-sized copper and silver crystallites have been directly synthesized via solvothermal treatment of CuCl2·2H2O or AgNO3 in ethylenediamine (EDA) at 80–180 °C for 15–20 h, and characterized by means of X-ray powder diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy. It was suggested that the formation of copper and silver crystallites in this solvothermal system be through a typical complexation–reduction process, in which EDA serves not only as a reducing reagent, but also as a complexing solvent.