Synthesis and field emission properties of GaN nanowires

Gallium nitride (GaN) nanowires grown on nickel-coated n-type Si (1 0 0) substrates have been synthesized using chemical vapor deposition (CVD), and the field emission properties of GaN nanowires have been studied. The results show that (1) the grown GaN nanowires, which have diameters in the range of 50-100 nm and lengths of several micrometers, are uniformly distributed on Si substrates. The characteristics of the grown GaN nanowires have been investigated using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and through these investigations it was found that the GaN nanowires are of a good crystalline quality (2) When the emission current density is 100 μA/cm², the necessary electric field is an open electric field of around 9.1 V/μm (at room temperature). The field enhancement factor is ∼730. The field emission properties of GaN nanowires films are related both to the surface roughness and the density of the nanowires in the film.     

An effective surface-enhanced Raman scattering template based on gold nanoparticle/silicon nanowire arrays

A large-scale Si nanowire array （SiNWA） is fabricated with gold （Au） nanoparticles by simple metal-assisted chemical etching and metal reduction processes. The three-dimensional nanostructured Au/SiNWA is evaluated as an active substrate for surface-enhanced Raman scattering （SERS）. The results show that the detection limit for rhodamine 6G is as low as 10-7 M, and the Raman enhancement factor is as large as 105 with a relative standard deviation of less than 25%. After the calibration of the Raman peak intensifies of rhodamine 6G and thiram, organic molecules could be quantitatively detected. These results indicate that Au/SiNWA is a promising SERS-active substrate for the detection of biomolecules present in low concentrations. Our findings are an important advance in SERS substrates to allow fast and quantitative detection of trace organic contaminants.     

Influence of growth time on field emission properties from carbon nanotubes deposited on arrayed nanoporous silicon pillars

We investigated the influence of growth time on field emission properties of multi-walled carbon nanotubes deposited on silicon nanoporous pillar array (MWCNTs/Si-NPA), which were fabricated by thermal chemical vapour deposition at 800 °C for 5, 15 and 25 min respectively, to better understand the origins of good field emission properties. The results showed that the MWCNTs/Si-NPA grown for 15 min had the highest field emission efficiency of the three types of samples. Morphologies of the products were examined by field-emission scanning electron microscope, and the excellent field emission performance was attributed not only to the formation of a nest array of multi-walled carbon nanotubes, which would largely reduce the electrostatic shielding among the emitters and resulted in a great enhancement factor, but also to the medium MWCNTs density films, there was an ideal compromise between the emitter density and the intertube distance, which also could effectively avoid electrostatic shielding effects, along with a high emitter density.     

Raman spectroscopy to probe residual stress in ZnO nanowire

Raman spectroscopic studies are performed to probe the stress along the length of a bent ZnO nanowire. The zone‐centre E₂^high optical phonon shows a systematic red shift as the junction point of the two arms of the nanowire is approached. The mechanism of the red shift is discussed on the basis of the tensile strain. From the red shift of the phonon peak position, the strain at different regions on the nanowire is estimated. Stress in the bent nanowire is also investigated using photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. Results of both Raman and PL study confirm that the bent nanowire is under tensile strain. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

VHF-PECVD低温制备微晶硅薄膜的拉曼散射光谱和光发射谱研究

采用拉曼散射光谱和PR650光谱光度计对VHF-PECVD制备的微晶硅薄膜进行了结构表征和在线监测研究.结果表明：功率对材料的晶化率（χc）有一定的调节作用，硅烷浓度大，微调作用更明显；SiH*的强度只能在一定的范围内表征材料的沉积速率，功率大相应的速率反而下降；I［Hα*］/I［SiH*］强度比值反映了材料晶化程度，此结果和拉曼散射光谱测试结果显示出一致性；I［Hβ*］/I［Hα*］的强度比表明氢等离子体中的电子温度随功率的增大而逐渐降低. 关键词： 甚高频等离子体增强化学气相沉积 微晶硅 拉曼散射谱 光发射谱     

Raman properties of silicon nanoparticles

The Raman spectra of silicon nanoparticles in the size range between d=3.5– have been studied experimentally. Scattering processes up to second order are being observed. The experimental results are analyzed in the framework of the phonon confinement model. While this model describes qualitatively the observations for first-order scattering processes, it is not applicable for scattering processes of higher order. From the analysis of second-order scattering, we determine a redshift of the TO phonon at the X and L points.     

Growth and field emission properties of globe-like diamond microcrystalline-aggregate

The globe-like diamond microcrystalline-aggregates were fabricated by microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition (MPCVD) method. The ceramic with a Ti mental layer was used as substrate. The fabricated diamond was evaluated by Raman scattering spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction spectrum (XRD), and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The field emission properties were tested by using a diode structure in a vacuum. A phosphor-coated indium tin oxide (ITO) anode was used for observing and characterizing the field emission. It was found that the globe-like diamond microcrystalline-aggregates exhibited good electron emission properties. The turn-on field was only 0.55 V/μm, and emission current density as high as 11 mA/cm² was obtained under an applied field of 2.9 V/μm for the first operation. The growth mechanism and field emission properties of the globe-like diamond microcrystalline-aggregates are discussed relating to microstructure and electrical conductivity.     

Synthesis of the vertically aligned carbon hexagonal nanoprism arrays and their application for field emission

A simple approach is demonstrated for effectively growing large-area vertically aligned carbon hexagonal nanoprism arrays on molybdenum substrates by the catalyst-assisted pulsed laser deposition techniques. The carbon hexagonal nanoprisms have uniform shape and length, almost aligned vertically on the substrate, and the average diameters are about 30 nm. The internal angles of the nanoprisms present 60°. The vertically aligned nanorods have also been obtained for a comparison in the presence of catalyst Fe. The sample with vertically aligned carbon hexagonal nanoprism arrays exhibits better field emission behaviors than that with aligned carbon nanorod arrays.     

Influence of high-energy electron irradiation on field emission properties of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) films

The effect of very high energy electron beam irradiation on the field emission characteristics of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) has been investigated. The MWCNTs films deposited on silicon (Si) substrates were irradiated with 6 MeV electron beam at different fluence of 1×10¹⁵, 2×10¹⁵ and 3×10¹⁵ electrons/cm². The irradiated films were characterized using scanning electron microscope (SEM) and micro-Raman spectrometer. The SEM analysis clearly revealed a change in surface morphology of the films upon irradiation. The Raman spectra of the irradiated films show structural damage caused by the interaction of high-energy electrons. The field emission studies were carried out in a planar diode configuration at the base pressure of ∼1×10⁻⁸ mbar. The values of the threshold field, required to draw an emission current density of ∼1 μA/cm², are found to be ∼0.52, 1.9, 1.3 and 0.8 V/μm for untreated, irradiated with fluence of 1×10¹⁵, 2×10¹⁵ and 3×10¹⁵ electrons/cm². The irradiated films exhibit better emission current stability as compared to the untreated film. The improved field emission properties of the irradiated films have been attributed to the structural damage as revealed from the Raman studies.     

Hybrid solar cells with conducting polymers and vertically aligned silicon nanowire arrays: The effect of silicon conductivity

Organic/inorganic hybrid solar cells, based on vertically aligned n-type silicon nanowires (n-Si NWs) and p-type conducting polymers (PEDOT:PSS), were investigated as a function of Si conductivity. The n-Si NWs were easily prepared from the n-Si wafer by employing a silver nanodot-mediated micro-electrochemical redox reaction. This investigation shows that the photocurrent-to-voltage characteristics of the n-Si NW/PEDOT:PSS cells clearly exhibit a stable rectifying diode behavior. The increase in current density and fill factor using high conductive silicon is attributed to an improved charge transport towards the electrodes achieved by lowering the device's series resistance. Our results also show that the surface area of the nanowire that can form heterojunction domains significantly influences the device performance.     

Local field emission of electrons from an individual boron nanowire at nanometer electrode separation

The field electron emission properties of an individual β-rhombohedral boron nanowire (β-r BNW) with electrode separation at nanoscale have been studied by ultrahigh vacuum four-probe scanning tunneling microscope (STM) system. A reproducible and stable emission current can be obtained. The maximal emission current density of individual boron nanowire is about 5 × 10⁴ A/cm² at a low bias voltage (80 V). An obvious deviation from the Fowler-Nordheim (FN) theory appears, when the electrode separation reduced below 120 nm. This deviation is tentatively assumed to due to the invalidation of free electron cloud approximation in FN theory.     

带栅极纳米线冷阴极的场增强因子研究

场增强因子是体现场发射冷阴极器件性能优劣的重要参数.利用静电场理论给出了一种带栅极(normal-gated)纳米线冷阴极的场增强因子表示式β=k₁{N²·(L-d₁)²+［1/k₁+(L-d₁)］²}^1/2，且进一步分析了几何参数对场增强因子的影响.结果表明，纳米线突出栅孔的部分(L-d₁)与栅孔半径越大，则场增强因子越大；而纳米线半径越小，则场增强因子越大；当L远大于d₁时满足β∝L/r₀.其中N=N₁(k₁r₀)/N₀(k₁r₀)，N₀(k₁r₀)和N₁(k₁r₀)分别代表零阶和一阶Neumann函数，k₁=0.8936/R，R为栅孔半径，L为纳米线长度，r₀为纳米线半径，d₁表示阴极与栅极间距.     

Computing Raman and infrared wavenumbers of nanostructures: application to silicon nanowires

The characterization of nanostructures with spectroscopic methods is a fundamental tool in nanoscience. For novel nanostructures, the interpretation of spectral features is a challenging task. To address this issue, we present the “Symmetry‐Filtered Molecular Dynamics (SFMD)” method to calculate Raman and infrared wavenumbers from molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, employing only the symmetry of the atomic structure. Explicit and expensive calculations of the electric polarizability or the dipole moment are not required. Therefore, our method can be easily used with any standard MD software. On the basis of the density functional tight‐binding method for the MD simulations, we apply our method to bulk silicon and small‐diameter hydrogen‐passivated silicon nanowires. For bulk silicon, we study the wavenumber shift of the Raman peak with temperature and obtain results that are in good agreement with experiments. We further show that thermal lattice expansion is a minor effect (22%) and that temperature‐driven anharmonic effects (78%) are the main contributions to that wavenumber shift. By analyzing the bond lengths of different silicon nanowires, we found that surface stress manifests as a 0.37% shortening of bonds only in the outermost silicon layer. We further analyzed the diameter‐dependent wavenumber shift of a Raman peak in silicon nanowires. We found that the main contribution to the wavenumber shift comes from the phonon confinement effect and surface stress leads to an additional shift of 9–22%. Our results indicate that our method is able to produce quantitative results that can be compared with experiments. We propose our method to be used for the understanding of Raman and infrared spectra of novel bulk and nanostructures. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Synthesis and field-emission properties of the tungsten oxide nanowire arrays

High-density, uniformly distributed and quasi-aligned tungsten oxide nanowire arrays have been synthesized by a conventional thermal evaporation approach on indium tin oxide (ITO) coated glass substrates without any catalysts. The temperature of the substrate was . The tungsten oxide nanowires are single crystalline with growth direction of [0 1 0]. For commercial applications, field emission properties of tungsten oxide nanowires were studied under a poor vacuum at room temperature. The electron field-emission turn-on field (E_to), defined as the macroscopic field required to produce a current density of , is about . The performance reveals that the tungsten oxide nanowire arrays can be served as a good candidate for commercial application in field-emission displays.     

晶体硅太阳电池表面纳米线阵列减反射特性研究

为增强晶体硅太阳电池的光利用率, 提高光电转换效率, 研究了硅纳米线阵列的光学散射性质. 运用严格耦合波理论对硅纳米线阵列在310—1127 nm波段的反射率进行了模拟计算, 用田口方法对硅纳米线阵列的表面传输效率进行了优化. 结果表明, 当硅纳米线阵列的周期为50 nm, 占空比为0.6, 高度约1000 nm时减反射效果最佳; 该结构在上述波段的平均反射率约为2%, 且在较大入射角度范围保持不变. 采用金属催化化学腐蚀法, 于室温、室压条件下在单晶硅表面制备周期为60 nm,占空比为0.53, 高度为500 nm的硅纳米线阵列结构, 其反射率的实验测试结果与计算模拟值相符, 在上述波段的平均反射率为4%—5%, 相对于单晶硅35%左右的反射率, 减反射效果明显. 这种减反射微结构能够在降低太阳电池成本的同时有效减小单晶硅表面的光反射损失, 提高光电转换效率.     

Fabrication and field emission properties of multi-walled carbon nanotube/silicon nanowire array

Silicon nanowire (SiNW) arrays were fabricated on silicon wafers by the metal-assisted chemical etching method. Varied average diameters of SiNW arrays were realized through further treatment in a mixed agent of HF and HNO₃ of certain concentrations. After the treatment, there were more than 93% SiNWs with diameters smaller than 100 nm. The tip of each SiNW was subsequently wrapped with multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) with chemical vapor deposition method. The as-fabricated MWCNT/SiNW arrays were fabricated into electric field emitters, with turn-on field of 2.0 V/μm (current density: 10 μA/cm²), much lower than that of SiNW array (5.0 V/μm). The turn-on electric field of MWCNT/SiNW array decreased with the decreasing of the average diameter of SiNWs, indicating the performance of the field emission is relative to the morphology of SiNWs. As the SiNW array is uniform in height and easy to fabricate, the MWCNT/SiNW array shows potential applications in flat electric display.     

Microstructure and magnetic properties of Co-Cu nanowire arrays fabricated by galvanic displacement deposition

CoCu nanowires were fabricated in anodic alumina templates by a simple metal displacement deposition method and the as-deposited samples were subsequently annealed at 400 °C in vacuum. The CoCu nanowires are 80 nm in diameter and 50 μm in length. The aspect ratio (ratio of length to diameter) is larger than 600, which results in distinctive magnetic anisotropy. Enhanced coercivity (about 2245 Oe) and large squareness of 92% have been observed in the annealed samples.     

High-density uniformly aligned silicon nanotip arrays and their enhanced field emission characteristics

High-density (∼10⁸/cm²), uniformly aligned silicon nanotip arrays are synthesized by a plasma-assisted hot-filament chemical vapor deposition process using mixed gases composed of hydrogen, nitrogen and methane. The silicon nanotips grow along 〈112〉, and are coated in situ with a ∼3 nm thick amorphous carbon film by increasing the methane concentration in the source gases. In comparison to the uncoated silicon nanotips arrays, the coated tips have enhanced field emission properties with a turn-on field of 1.6 V/μm (for 10 μA/cm²) and threshold field of 3 V/μm (for 10 mA/cm²), suggesting their potential applications for flat panel displays.     

Massive transfer of vertically aligned Si nanowire array onto alien substrates and their characteristics

Si nanowires (NWs) are promising materials for future electronic, photovoltaic, and sensor applications. So far the Si NWs are mainly formed on particular substrates or at high temperatures, greatly limiting their application flexibility. Here we report a low temperature process for forming and massively transferring vertically aligned Si NWs on alien substrates with a large density of about (3-5) × 10⁷ NWs/mm². The X-ray diffraction spectrum reveals that the transferred NWs exhibit almost the same crystal property as the bulk Si. Our investigation further shows that the transferred NWs have exceptional optical characteristics. The transferred Si NWs of 12.14 μm exhibit the transmittance as low as 0.3% in the near infrared region and 0.07% in the visible region. The extracted absorption coefficient of Si NWs in the near infrared region is about 3 × 10³ cm⁻¹, over 30 times larger than that of the bulk Si. Because of the low temperature process, it enables a large variety of alien substrates such as glass and plastics to be used. In addition, the exceptional properties of the transferred NWs offer potential applications for photovoltaic, photo-detectors, sensors, and flexible electronics.     

电化学沉积Fe与FePd纳米线阵列的磁性

利用电化学沉积方法在氧化铝模板中制备了一维Fe和Fe_095Pd_{0 05}合金纳米线阵列.两种样品均有(110)晶向择优取向，纳米线直径为60nm.在这一直径下形状各向异性 和内禀晶体各向异性的竞争结果很适合考察Pd掺杂的磁性行为.研究发现在FePd纳米线中， 由于极少量Pd在Fe中的合金化，减弱了晶体各向异性与形状各向异性的影响，改变了磁畴结 构，增强了畴壁钉扎作用，结果在Fe_095Pd_005纳米线 中便显示出强烈的沿线方向的各向异性，方形度和矫顽力也有较大改善. 关键词： 纳米线 电化学沉积 磁性