The plasma-induced formation of silver nanocrystals in aqueous solution and their catalytic activity for oxygen reduction.

Ag nanocrystals with different architectures are synthesized using a submerged plasma discharge without the involvement of any chemicals. The Ag architecture relies on the electron density in the plasma that could enable the Ag ions to be reduced instantaneously to generate a large number of small Ag nanoparticles. With a low electron density of 7.1 × 10-22 m-3, the Ag nanowires with a corrugated structure induced by twinning and stacking faults are formed along the entire longitudinal 〈111〉 direction. However, with a high electron density 13.7 × 10-22 m-3, the Ag nanodendrites are constructed with a defect-free structure. Due to the unique structure composed of twins and stacking faults, the Ag nanowires show a specific current density that is 2.7 times higher than the Ag nanodendrites towards the oxygen reduction reaction. This work not only suggests a synthetic route to the formation of nanowires with structural defects but also offers a rational design of electrocatalysts with enhanced catalytic activity.