A novel approach to low-temperature synthesis of cubic HfO(2) nanostructures and their cytotoxicity

The development of a strategy to stabilise the cubic phase of HfO(2) at lower temperatures is necessary for the emergence of unique properties that are not realised in the thermodynamically stable monoclinic phase. A very high temperature (>2600 °C) is required to produce the cubic phase of HfO(2), whereas the monoclinic phase is stable at low temperature. Here, a novel rapid synthesis strategy was designed to develop highly crystalline, pure cubic-phase HfO(2) nanoparticles (size <10 nm) using microwave irradiation. Furthermore, the as-prepared nanoparticles were converted to different morphologies (spherical nanoparticles and nanoplates) without compromising the cubic phase by employing a post-hydrothermal treatment in the presence of surface modifiers. The cytotoxicities and proliferative profiles of the synthesised cubic HfO(2) nanostructures were investigated over the MCF-7 breast cancer cell line, along with caspase-3/7 activities. The low-temperature phase stabilisation was significantly attributed to surface imperfections (defects and deformations) induced in the crystal lattice by the desirable presence of Na(2)S·xH(2)O and NaOH. Our work provides unprecedented insight into the stabilisation of nanoscale cubic-phase HfO(2) in ambient environments; the method could be extended to other challenging phases of nanomaterials.