Optical and Acoustic Vibrations Confined in Anatase TiO2 Nanoparticles under High-Pressure

The effect of an applied high pressure on the optical and acoustic vibrations of small anatase TiO2 nanoparticles is studied using Raman scattering. All the Raman peaks show a significant variation of their frequency with pressure, except for the low-frequency peak which is due to acoustic vibrations confined in the nanoparticles. These variations (or lack thereof) are compared to first-principles calculations of the stiffness tensor and phonons of bulk anatase TiO2 as a function of pressure. In particular, the variation of the shape of the low-frequency peak is explained by the increase of the elastic anisotropy of anatase TiO2 as pressure is increased.