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<article article-type="research-article" dtd-version="1.3" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xml:lang="en"><front><journal-meta><journal-id journal-id-type="publisher-id">najo</journal-id><journal-title-group><journal-title xml:lang="en">Nanosystems: Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics</journal-title><trans-title-group xml:lang="ru"><trans-title>Наносистемы: физика, химия, математика</trans-title></trans-title-group></journal-title-group><issn pub-type="ppub">2220-8054</issn><issn pub-type="epub">2305-7971</issn><publisher><publisher-name>Университет ИТМО</publisher-name></publisher></journal-meta><article-meta><article-id pub-id-type="doi">10.17586/2220-8054-2018-9-3-364-369</article-id><article-id custom-type="elpub" pub-id-type="custom">najo-798</article-id><article-categories><subj-group subj-group-type="heading"><subject>Research Article</subject></subj-group><subj-group subj-group-type="section-heading" xml:lang="en"><subject>PHYSICS</subject></subj-group><subj-group subj-group-type="section-heading" xml:lang="ru"><subject>ФИЗИКА</subject></subj-group></article-categories><title-group><article-title>Scherrer formula: estimation of error in determining small nanoparticle size</article-title><trans-title-group xml:lang="ru"><trans-title></trans-title></trans-title-group></title-group><contrib-group><contrib contrib-type="author" corresp="yes"><name-alternatives><name name-style="western" xml:lang="en"><surname>Vorokh</surname><given-names>A. S.</given-names></name></name-alternatives><bio xml:lang="en"><p>91 Pervomaiskaya st., Ekaterinburg</p></bio><email xlink:type="simple">vorokh@ihim.uran.ru</email><xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff-1"/></contrib></contrib-group><aff xml:lang="en" id="aff-1"><institution>Institute of Solid State Chemistry of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences</institution><country>Russian Federation</country></aff><pub-date pub-type="collection"><year>2018</year></pub-date><pub-date pub-type="epub"><day>14</day><month>08</month><year>2025</year></pub-date><volume>9</volume><issue>3</issue><fpage>364</fpage><lpage>369</lpage><permissions><copyright-statement>Copyright &amp;#x00A9; Vorokh A.S., 2025</copyright-statement><copyright-year>2025</copyright-year><copyright-holder xml:lang="ru">Vorokh A.S.</copyright-holder><copyright-holder xml:lang="en">Vorokh A.S.</copyright-holder><license xml:lang="ru" license-type="creative-commons-attribution" xlink:href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" xlink:type="simple"><license-p>Данная работа распространяется под лицензией Creative Commons Attribution 4.0.</license-p></license><license xml:lang="en" license-type="creative-commons-attribution" xlink:href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" xlink:type="simple"><license-p>This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.</license-p></license></permissions><self-uri xlink:href="https://nanojournal.ifmo.ru/jour/article/view/798">https://nanojournal.ifmo.ru/jour/article/view/798</self-uri><abstract><p>The lower limit of the applicability of the Scherrer formula has been established by calculating the diffraction patterns from model nanoparticles by the Debye formula. Particle size was calculated using the Scherrer formula for different hkl-peaks. The obtained data of particle sizes were compared with “real” sizes of model particles in the same hkl-directions. The form-factor Khkl was analyzed as main correction of Scherrer formula. It was shown that the Scherrer formula error increases nonlinearly at particle sizes less than 4 nm. For any hkl direction, the absolute error of average particle size determination using formula does not exceed 0.3 nm. Analysis shows that average particle size can be determined by Scherrer formula from single diffraction peak of experimental pattern for center-symmetrical particles.</p></abstract><kwd-group xml:lang="en"><kwd>cherrer formula</kwd><kwd>nanoparticle size</kwd><kwd>Scherrer limit</kwd><kwd>Debye equation</kwd></kwd-group><funding-group><funding-statement xml:lang="en">The author thanks E. V. Shalaeva for useful discussion and A. L. Syuzyumova for English translation of the article. 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