Cascade processes in inelastic light scattering in ZnSe nanowire structures

The resonance Raman scattering of light in MBE-grown structures with ZnSe nanowires (10–20 nm in diameter) with an Au film deposited on the substrate used as a catalyst was investigated. The thicknesses of the Au layers were 2, 10, and 100 Å. The photon energy of the He-Cd pump laser (λ = 441.6 nm) was in excess of the band gap of bulk ZnSe, and the measurements were conducted at room temperature. Under these conditions, the Raman spectra are defined by a cascade process in which the electron interacting with a longitudinal optical phonon transfers between real band states with a certain probability of radiative recombination at each step. The blue shift of the luminescence maximum associated with the quantum confinement of carriers in the nanowire has been observed. The average nanowire diameter derived from the magnitude of this shift agrees well with electron microscopy measurements.