Poly(vinylpyrrolidone): a new reductant for preparation of tellurium nanorods, nanowires, and tubes from TeO₂

Abstract

A new approach has been developed for the preparation of tellurium with various morphologies by a simple hydrothermal method using TeO2 and poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP). In this method, PVP acts not only as a surfactant but also as a reducing reagent, thus no additional reductants are needed. By control of the reaction conditions, tellurium nanorods, nanowires, and tubes have been prepared. Our experiments showed that pyrrole and polyethylene glycol (PEG) can also be used as reducing reagents.