Nanoscale metal oxide particles produced in the plasma discharge in the liquid phase upon exposure to ultrasonic cavitation. 1. Method for producing particles

It is shown that a new form of the plasma discharge with bulk glow throughout the space between electrodes and an descending current-voltage characteristic, occurring in liquid in an ultrasonic field with an intensity above the cavitation threshold, can be efficiently used to initiate the various physical and chemical processes. In such an acoustic plasma discharge, nanoparticles of oxides of various metals, i.e., aluminum, copper, tin, iron, titanium, indium, zinc, molybdenum, and others, are synthesized with controllable particle shape and size and narrow size distribution. Micrographs of some nanoparticles are presented. The difference in luminescence of particles produced in the absence and presence of cavitation is shown.