Synthesis and morphology of silicon oxide nanowires from a free jet activated by electron-beam plasma

Silicon oxide nanowires were synthesized from monosilane–argon–hydrogen mixture by the gas-jet electron-beam plasma chemical deposition method with simultaneous oxygen injection into the vacuum chamber. The synthesis was performed on monocrystalline silicon substrates covered with micron and nanometer tin catalyst particles. The nanowires are formed the via vapor–liquid–solid mechanism in the “catalyst-on-bottom” mode, in which many nanowires grow from one catalyst particle. The process of synthesizing nanowires on a substrate with catalyst consists of three stages: heating to synthesis temperature, hydrogen plasma treatment, and nanowire growth. In the substrate region corresponding to the jet axis, different structures are formed depending on the catalyst particle size. For catalyst particles under 100 nm, there are formed structures of chaotically oriented and interlaced bundles of silica nanowires. For catalyst particles of 0.3–1 micron, there are formed oriented arrays of cylindrically shaped nanowire bundles (“microropes”). Cocoon-like structures are formed for catalyst particles of more than 1 micron.We propose a model of nanowire growth by this method, which is based on nonuniform heating of a catalyst particle by a directed plasma flow. It was found that for synthesis of oriented microrope arrays the initial tin film thickness should be less than 100 nm and the synthesis process should include a hydrogen plasma treatment stage.