A general method for preparing tellurides: Synthesis of PbTe, Ni2Te3, and Cu7Te5 from solutions under microwave radiation

Nanocrystals of binary metal tellurides, such as PbTe, Ni2Te3, and Cu7Te5, are synthesized by the polyol method under microwave radiation and studied using X-ray powder diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, and photoacoustic spectroscopy. Binary tellurides are formed only in the case when ethylene glycol is used as a reducing agent and only when the reaction is carried out under microwave radiation. No product is formed when the reactions are performed using a conventional technique of heating. The synthesis of the aforementioned metal tellurides is described, and the proposed mechanism of the reaction is discussed.