Sawtooth faceting in silicon nanowires

We observe in situ the vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) growth of Si nanowires, in UHV-CVD using Au catalyst. The nanowire sidewalls exhibit periodic sawtooth faceting, reflecting an oscillatory growth process. We interpret the facet alternation as resulting from the interplay of the geometry and surface en...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Physical review letters 2005-09, Vol.95 (14), p.146104.1-146101.4, Article 146104
Main Authors: ROSS, F. M, TERSOFF, J, REUTER, M. C
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science
rheology
Exact sciences and technology
Materials science
Nanoscale materials and structures: fabrication and characterization
Other topics in nanoscale materials and structures
Physics
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Summary:We observe in situ the vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) growth of Si nanowires, in UHV-CVD using Au catalyst. The nanowire sidewalls exhibit periodic sawtooth faceting, reflecting an oscillatory growth process. We interpret the facet alternation as resulting from the interplay of the geometry and surface energies of the wire and liquid droplet. Such faceting may be present in any VLS growth system in which there are no stable orientations parallel to the growth direction. The sawtooth structure has important implications for electronic mobility and scattering in nanowire devices.
ISSN:0031-9007
1079-7114
DOI:10.1103/PhysRevLett.95.146104