Electrical characterization of suspended Pt nanowires grown by EBID with water vapour assistance

• Published in: Microelectronic engineering 2008-05, Vol.85 (5-6), p.1166-1169
• Main Authors: Gazzadi, G.C., Frabboni, S., Menozzi, C., Incerti, L.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties; Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science; rheology; Electrical characterization of nanowires; Electron beam induced deposition (EBID); Electronic structure and electrical properties of surfaces, interfaces, thin films and low-dimensional structures; Electronic transport in multilayers, nanoscale materials and structures; Exact sciences and technology; Materials science; Methods of nanofabrication; Nanoscale materials and structures: fabrication and characterization; Physics; Pt nanowires; Quantum wires
• ISSN: 0167-9317; 1873-5568
• DOI: 10.1016/j.mee.2008.01.016

Suspended nanowires (SNWs), 600nm-long, 20nm-wide and 30nm-thick, were grown by electron beam-induced deposition of metallorganic Pt, with and without water vapour assistance, and electrically characterized at room temperature. SNWs have Ohmic behaviour in the (−0.1, 0.1V) range, and show conductivity improvement and structural evolution as subsequent I–V cycles are applied; both effects being enhanced by water vapour assistance. Typical resistivities after two I–V cycles are 1–3×10−4Ωm and 6–8×10−5Ωm, for Pt and (Pt+water) depositions, respectively. Structural evolution consists of a progressive coalescence of the Pt nanocrystals into large (15–20nm) and separated grains, leaving wide regions essentially made of carbon material. I–V characteristics over an extended (−2, 2V) range show a non-linear behaviour outside the (−0.4, 0.4V) interval, with currents up to ∼90μA at 2V, corresponding to current densities of ∼1×107A/cm2.