Electrochemical Fabrication of Pd-Ag Alloy Nanowire Arrays in Anodic Alumina Oxide Template

The synthesis of Pd-Ag alloy nanowires in nanopores of porous anodic aluminum oxide （AAO） template by electrochemical deposition technique was reported. Pd-Ag alloy nanowires with 16%-25% Ag content are expected to serve as candidates of useful nanomaterials for the hydrogen sensors. Scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and energy dispersed X-ray spectroscopy （EDX） were employed to characterize the morphologies and compositions of the Pd-Ag nanowires. X-ray diffraction （XRD） was used to characterize the phase properties of the Pd-Ag nanowires. Pd-Ag alloy nanowire arrays with 17.28%-23.76% Ag content have been successfully fabricated by applying potentials ranging from -0.8 to -1.0 V （vs SCE）. The sizes of the alloy nanowires are in agreement with the diameter of AAO nanopores. The underpotential deposition of Ag＋ on Pd and Au plays an important role in producing an exceptionally high Ag content in the alloy. Alloy compositions can still be controlled by adjusting the ion concentration ratio of Pd^2＋ and Ag＋ and the electrodeposition processes. XRD shows that nanowires obtained are in the form of alloy of Pd and Ag.