The synthesis of colloidal metal oxide nanocrystals with controlled shape is of fundamental and technological interest because in this way it is possible to tune their shape-dependent physical properties and thus consolidate their promising applications in optics, catalysis, biosensing, and data storage. Recently, the organic-solution phase [1][2][3] and liquid-solid-solution phase synthetic transfer routes [4] have been demonstrated to be versatile pathways toward such shape-controlled metal oxide nanocrystals. In all of these methods, organic surfactants play a key role in determining the growth and stability of nanocrystals. Combining this concept and the properties of supercritical water (SCW) will lead to a novel approach for the synthesis of metal oxide nanocrystals. For example, SCW is chemically stable and processing with it is environmentally benign; [5] it acts as a unique medium to aid in the spontaneous nucleation and crystallization of metal oxide nanoparticles; [6] and by using organic ligand molecules that are miscible with SCW, crystal growth can be limited and agglomeration can be inhibited in favor of small, well-dispersed particles. [7,8] As a well-known metal oxide, and because of its novel properties, ceria (CeO 2 ) has been extensively applied in catalysis, electrochemistry, and optics. For example, ceria nanocrystals have high oxygen-storage capability and act as an important component in three-way catalytic converters to clean up automotive exhausts.[9] To elevate catalytic activity, it is desirable to prepare ceria samples with a high surface area. So far, ceria nanocrystals with spherical, wire, rod, and tadpole shapes have been synthesized. [10] Along with this research, there is another recent trend aimed at tuning the ceria-crystal shape in order to expose reactive crystal planes for high reactivity.[11]Sayle et al. predicted in their theoretical study that the (100) surface is more reactive than (110) or (111) for the CeO 2 / YSZ(110) system (where YSZ is yttria-stabilized zirconia).[11a]Yan and co-workers synthesized ceria nanoparticles with various shapes using a hydrothermal method, and experimentally observed that cubic particles (ca. 36 nm) with exposed {100} crystal planes showed the highest oxygen-storage capacity.[11d]Despite these recent advances, it is still a great challenge to synthesize ceria nanocrystals of high quality in terms of uniform size, well-defined crystal shape, and ease of fabrication.Here, we report a simple and rapid approach for producing colloidal ceria nanocrystals on scales of less than 10 nm, with tailor-made ceria crystal planes, using organic-ligand-assisted supercritical water as the medium. The synthetic strategy is depicted in Figure 1. This strategy depends on: 1) sub-decananometer single-crystal formation in a supercritical hydrothermal process; [6] 2) the miscibility of the organic ligand molecules with high-temperature water, which is due to the lower dielectric constant of the water; [12] and 3) controlled nanocrystal growth from the ...