Controllable Synthesis and Study on Morphology of Copper Nanowires

High-purity, large-aspect-ratio, and well-dispersed copper nanowires (CuNWs) with an average diameter of 45 nm and length >100 μm were successfully synthesized by reducing a Cu(II) salt with glucose, with oleylamine (OM) and oleic acid (OA) serving as dual capping agents, through hydrothermal reduction. A systematic study of the effects of the copper salt, capping agents, reductant, and temperature on the morphology of CuNWs has been conducted. Our results indicate that CuNWs with different diameters can be obtained using different copper salts. The diameter of the as-prepared CuNWs decreases with increasing amounts of OM/OA and glucose but increases with the increasing temperature of the reaction. By adjusting the experimental parameters, we could achieve controlled synthesis of CuNWs and obtain high-quality CuNWs with different diameters of 45, 76, 85, 90, 100, 112, 135, and 175 nm.