Determination of Crystallographic Orientation and Exposed Facets of Titanium Oxide Nanocrystals

-001 nanocrystals are recognized to be dominated by {001} facets, in fact, anatase nanocrystals with both dominant {001} and {111} facets always co-exist due to the similarities in the lattice fringes and intersection angles between the two types of facets (0.38 nm and 90° in the [001] direction, 0.35 nm and 82° in the [111] direction). A paradigm for determining the crystallographic orientation and exposed facets based on transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis, which provides a universal methodology to nanomaterials for determining the orientation and exposed facets, is also given.