Synthesis of Star-Shaped Boron Carbide Micro-Crystallites under High Pressure and High Temperatures

Abstract

We synthesized star-shaped pentagonal microcrystals of boron carbide with an extremely low carbon content (~5%), from m-carborane under high pressure (7 GPa) and high temperature (1370–1670 K). These crystals have five-fold symmetry and grow in the shape of stars. A 5-fold symmetry in large micron-sized crystals is extremely rare making this a striking observation.