The complete experimental system is shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The plasma torch consists of a 2% thoriated tungsten cathode and a stack of four copper ring segments separated by insulating rings and a copper anode, all of which are intensely water-cooled (Fig. 3). The rings and the Teflon gaskets/insulators were configured geometrically to avoid Teflon being directly exposed to the plasma radiation. The anode is connected to a 15-mm diameter,25-mm long injection section through a 12-mm thick flange, followed by a 50-mm long converging nozzle (of inlet diameter 10 mm and outlet diameter 5 mm). The nozzle exhausts into a low-pressure collection chamber with a movable substrate for sampling the particles. The system is powered through a full wave DC Thyristorised power supply (150 V/400 A) with an HF igniter. The chamber was evacuated with 580 and 1500 lpm rotary pumps and pressure was measured with a mercury manometer. A closed loop water circulating system with a water storage tank (1500 l), centrifugal pump, water headers and 15 numbers of parallel lines each comprising of valves, rotameters, and AD590 temperature sensors were used to measure heat flux to various components of the torch reactor and the chamber. A PID-controlled tubular furnace was used to evaporate the metal chlorides.An ADVANTECH, 330 kHz card was used to acquire data and feed to the computer. The average plasma temperature at the injection section and just outside the nozzle was estimated through calorimetric measurement of heat loss from the plasma upstream of these axial locations [1]. The power in the plasma gas at those sections was measured and the standard enthalpy–temperature look-up tables provided the average plasma temperature. The electron density and temperature in the expanded plume were determined through a modified Langmuir probe (0.25 mm diameter and protruding 2.5 mm from alumina jacket). The probe was placed momentarily in the sampling zone and biased with a ramping voltage in typically millisecond time period [12,13].The system was first pumped down to 102 mbar base pressure, plasma was stabilized and vapor phase reactants were injected into the plasma for materials synthesis.Samples were collected at a distance of 12 cm from the nozzle exit and sent for characterization.