Stacking faults in alumina nanorods were investigated by means of high-resolution electron microscopy. The results showed that the ordered arrangement of stacking faults in one polymorphic form of alumina could lead to transformation to another form. It was suggested that the alternative arrangement of (010) and (0¯10) stacking faults induced this transformation. This model was in agreement with experimental results and was consistent with other investigations. The work thus shed light on the disputed transition mechanism in metastable alumina polymorphs.

Stacking Faults and Polymorphs in Alumina Nanorods. W.F.Li, X.L.Ma, Y.Li, W.S.Zhang, W.Zhang, Z.D.Zhang: Philosophical Magazine, 2005, 85[32], 3809-21