TiO$_{2}$ nanostructures prepared by ferrocene/cobalt catalyst agents

We present the growth and characterization of TiO$_{2}$ nanocrystals. Nanostructured growth is obtained in a low-pressure CVD system by using an organometallic precursor Ti(OC$_{3}$H$_{7})_{4}$ as both the Ti and O source catalyzed by both ferrocene (an organometallic precursor) and cobalt metallic clusters prepared by the microwave-assisted polyol method. Two kinds of TiO$_{2}$ structures were obtained in the cobalt clusters: a) pine-tree like (with short-leaf structure) and b) long-leaf structures as large as a few micrometers in size and both under 10-nm in thickness. Long-leaf TiO$_{2}$ structures were grown at cobalt grain boundaries. For the growth conditions utilized, the TiO$_{2}$ structures are composed of both anatase and rutile crystallographic phases.