Formation mechanisms of α-Si3N4 crystals from amorphous Si3N4 powder synthesized by a low-temperature liquid-phase method.

[Display omitted] • The pre-prepared amorphous Si 3 N 4 powder has a unique porous structure. • The growth of α-Si 3 N 4 whiskers follows the vapor–solid mechanism. • The growth of α-Si 3 N 4 granules follows the vapor–solid-solid mechanism. A facile procedure was provided to obtain amorphous Si 3 N 4 powder via a liquid-phase method, followed by a heat treatment process to realize tailorable shapes for α-Si 3 N 4 crystal, while Si 3 N 4 granules were synthesized and whiskers were inhibited. The influence of the temperature on the particle morphology and growth mechanisms were investigated. Characterizations indicated that the crystallization temperature played an important role in controlling the morphology of α-Si 3 N 4 powder, while the relatively lowly temperature (below 1519 °C) was beneficial to forming whiskers. The growth of Si 3 N 4 whiskers, derive from the reaction between SiO(g) and N 2 , follows the vapor–solid (VS) mechanism, which is inhibited by the increase in temperature. Instead, higher temperatures were conducive to forming granular structures. Highly crystalline α-Si 3 N 4 granules were prepared at 1550 °C due to Si*(g) and N*(g) recombining to Si 3 N 4 nuclei via the vapor–solid-solid (VSS) mechanism providing a theoretical basis for inhibiting the production of the whiskers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]