Synthesis of ordered Al nanowire arrays

Ordered Al nanowire arrays with the same nanowire density but the diameters decrease radially embedded in one piece of anodic alumina membranes were successfully fabricated by two-step synthesis: electrodeposition of Zn and replacement in AlCl₃ solution. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and selected-area electron diffraction techniques were used to characterize the Al nanowires obtained. SEM and TEM images taken from the different areas of Al nanowire arrays show that we can control the growth of aligned Al nanowires with different diameters in a single process at the same time. The investigation results not only have potential applications in photoelectric devices but also open up a new method for fabricating nano-scale materials.