Silica nanoparticles obtained from a method involving a direct current electric arc in an oxygen-containing atmosphere
US5962132A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jan 8, 1998 |
| Grant date | Oct 5, 1999 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jan 8, 2018 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10T428/2993
- WIPO fieldElectrical machinery, apparatus, energy
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A method of making silicon oxide nanoparticles possessing photoluminescence in the blue and green part of the visible spectrum when irradiated with ultraviolet (UV) light. The silicon oxide nanoparticles are formed in a chamber containing a direct current (dc) electric arc that generates a plasma in an oxygen-containing atmosphere. In the chamber, silicon is used as the anode, and the cathode can be copper (Cu) or tungsten (W). The use of silicon as an electrode is enabled by doping silicon with boron to a sufficiently high electronic conductivity, and orienting the two electrodes vertically in the chamber, so that the silicon anode is lowermost to contain silicon in the anode when it melts and vaporizes in the arc. The silicon oxide nanoparticles are collected on a cold plate adjacent to the arc.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.