Polygonal single-crystal aluminum borate microtubes

In this paper we report the synthesis of polygonal single-crystal aluminum borate microtubes by the direct calcination of alumina and boron nitride powders in air. The diameters of the obtained tubes vary between 1 and 15 mu m; and the lengths are in the range of tens to hundreds of micrometers. The cross-sections of the microtubes are in the shapes of rectangular, hexagonal, and quasi-circle. A new solid-liquid-solid growth mechanism was proposed to account for the formation of microtubes instead of whiskers.