Structural modulation of nanowire interfaces grown over selectively disrupted single crystal surfaces

Recent breakthroughs in deterministic approaches to the fabrication of nanowire arrays have demonstrated the possibility of fabricating such networks using low-cost scalable methods. In this regard, we have developed a scalable growth platform for lateral fabrication of nanocrystals with high precision utilizing lattice match and symmetry. Using this planar architecture, a number of homo- and heterostructures have been demonstrated including ZnO nanowires grown over GaN. The latter combination produces horizontal, epitaxially formed crystals aligned in the plane of the substrate containing a very low number of intrinsic defects. We use such ordered structures as model systems in the interests of gauging the interfacial structural dynamics in relation to external stimuli. Nanosecond pulses of focused ion beams are used to slightly modify the substrate surface and selectively form lattice disorders in the path of nanowire growth to examine the nanocrystal, namely: its directionality and lattice defects. High resolution electron microscopies are used to reveal some interesting structural effects; for instance, a minimum threshold of surface defects that can divert nanowires. We also discuss data indicating formation of surface strains and show their mitigation during the growth process.

[1]  Mark Schvartzman,et al.  Guided Growth of Millimeter-Long Horizontal Nanowires with Controlled Orientations , 2011, Science.

[2]  Andrew J. Steckl,et al.  Focused ion beam micromilling of GaN and related substrate materials (sapphire, SiC, and Si) , 1999 .

[3]  G. G. Stokes "J." , 1890, The New Yale Book of Quotations.

[4]  Alois Lugstein,et al.  Current density profile extraction of focused ion beams based on atomic force microscopy contour profiling of nanodots , 2002 .

[5]  John B. Shoven,et al.  I , Edinburgh Medical and Surgical Journal.

[6]  W. Marsden I and J , 2012 .

[7]  Ronit Popovitz-Biro,et al.  ZnSe Nanowires: Guided Growth of Horizontal ZnSe Nanowires and their Integration into High‐Performance Blue–UV Photodetectors (Adv. Mater. 27/2015) , 2015 .

[8]  Irving Chyr,et al.  GaN focused ion beam micromachining with gas-assisted etching , 2001 .

[9]  Latika Menon,et al.  Epitaxially grown GaN nanowire networks , 2009 .

[10]  Michael G. Spencer,et al.  Heteroepitaxy of ZnO on GaN and its implications for fabrication of hybrid optoelectronic devices , 1998 .

[11]  Babak Nikoobakht,et al.  Formation of planar arrays of one-dimensional p-n heterojunctions using surface-directed growth of nanowires and nanowalls. , 2010, ACS nano.

[12]  J. Ziegler,et al.  SRIM – The stopping and range of ions in matter (2010) , 2010 .

[13]  Zhiyong Fan,et al.  Large-scale, heterogeneous integration of nanowire arrays for image sensor circuitry , 2008, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

[14]  Richard H. Livengood,et al.  Probe current distribution characterization technique for focused ion beam , 2012 .

[15]  Andrew G. Gillies,et al.  Nanowire active-matrix circuitry for low-voltage macroscale artificial skin. , 2010, Nature materials.

[16]  David A. Muller,et al.  Study of strain fields at a-Si/c-Si interface , 2004 .

[17]  Hideyoshi Horie,et al.  Growth of a-plane GaN on lattice-matched ZnO substrates using a room-temperature buffer layer , 2007 .

[18]  Babak Nikoobakht,et al.  Toward Industrial-Scale Fabrication of Nanowire-Based Devices , 2007 .