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The formation of well-controlled interfaces between materials of different structure and bonding is a key requirement when developing new devices and functionalities. Of particular importance are epitaxial or low defect density interfaces between two-dimensional materials and three-dimensional semiconductors or metals, where an interfacial structure influences electrical conductivity in field effect and optoelectronic devices, charge transfer for spintronics and catalysis, and proximity-induced superconductivity. Epitaxy and hence well-defined interfacial structure has been demonstrated for several metals on van der Waals-bonded substrates. Semiconductor epitaxy on such substrates has been harder to control, for example during chemical vapor deposition of Si and Ge on graphene. Here, we demonstrate a catalytically mediated heteroepitaxy approach to achieve epitaxial growth of three-dimensional semiconductors such as Ge and Si on van der Waals-bonded materials such as graphene and hexagonal boron nitride. Epitaxy is “transferred” from the substrate to semiconductor nanocrystals via solid metal nanocrystals that readily align on the substrate and catalyze the formation of aligned nuclei of the semiconductor. In situ transmission electron microscopy allows us to elucidate the reaction pathway for this process and to show that solid metal nanocrystals can catalyze semiconductor growth at a significantly lower temperature than direct chemical vapor deposition or deposition mediated by liquid catalyst droplets. We discuss Ge and Si growth as a model system to explore the details of such hetero-interfacing and its applicability to a broader range of materials.

International audience; In situ transmission electron microscopy reveals that an atomically thin crystalline phase at the surface of liquid Au–Si is stable over an unexpectedly wide range of conditions. By measuring the surface structure as a function of liquid temperature and composition, a simple thermodynamic model is developed to explain the stability of the ordered phase. The presence of surface ordering plays a key role in the pathway by which the Au–Si eutectic solidifies and also dramatically affects the catalytic properties of the liquid, explaining the anomalously slow growth kinetics of Si nanowires at low temperature. A strategy to control the presence of the surface phase is discussed, using it as a tool in designing strategies for nanostructure growth.

We show that templating a Si surface with a focused beam of Si2+ or Si+ ions can create suitable nucleation sites for the subsequent growth of self-assembled Ge quantum dots by chemical vapor deposition. To determine the mechanism of patterning we use atomic force microscopy to show that, similar to Ga+ patterning, the formation of a surface pit is required to enable control over Ge quantum dot locations. We find that relatively high implantation doses are required to achieve patterning, and these doses lead to amorphization of the substrate. We assess the degree to which the substrate crystallinity can be recovered by subsequent processing. Using in situ transmission electron microscopy heating experiments we find that recrystallization is possible at the growth temperature of the Ge quantum dots, but defects remain that follow the pattern of the initial implantation. We discuss the formation mechanism of the defects and the benefits of using Si ions for patterning both defects and quantum dots on Si substrates.

We report layer-by-layer (LBL) assembly of graphene/carbon-coated mesoporous SnO 2 spheres (Gr/C-SnO 2 spheres), without binder and conducting additives, as anode materials with excellent Li-ion insertion–extraction properties. Our results indicate that these novel LBL assembled electrodes have high reversible Li storage capacity, improved cycling, and especially good rate performance, even at high specific currents. The superior electrochemical performance offered by these LBL assembled Gr/C-SnO 2 spheres is attributed to the enhanced electronic conductivity and effective diffusion of Li ions in the interconnected network of nanoparticles forming the mesoporous SnO 2 spheres.

Substrate, environment, and lattice imperfections have a strong impact on the local electronic structure and the optical properties of atomically thin transition metal dichalcogenides. We find by a comparative study of MoS2 on SiO2 and hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) using scanning tunneling spectroscopy (STS) measurements that the apparent bandgap of MoS2 on SiO2 is significantly reduced compared to MoS2 on hBN. The bandgap energies as well as the exciton binding energies determined from all-optical measurements are very similar for MoS2 on SiO2 and hBN. This discrepancy is found to be caused by a substantial amount of band tail states near the conduction band edge of MoS2 supported by SiO2. The presence of those states impacts the local density of states in STS measurements and can be linked to a broad red-shifted photoluminescence peak and a higher charge carrier density that are all strongly diminished or even absent using high quality hBN substrates. By taking into account the substrate effects, we obtain a quasiparticle gap that is in excellent agreement with optical absorbance spectra and we deduce an exciton binding energy of about 0.53 eV on SiO2 and 0.44 eV on hBN.

For the first time, it is demonstrated that nanoscale HfO2 surface passivation layers formed by atomic layer deposition (ALD) significantly improve the performance of Li ion batteries with SnO2 -based anodes. Specifically, the measured battery capacity at a current density of 150 mAg(-1) after 100 cycles is 548 and 853 mAhg(-1) for the uncoated and HfO2 -coated anodes, respectively. Material analysis reveals that the HfO2 layers are amorphous in nature and conformably coat the SnO2 -based anodes. In addition, the analysis reveals that ALD HfO2 not only protects the SnO2 -based anodes from irreversible reactions with the electrolyte and buffers its volume change, but also chemically interacts with the SnO2 anodes to increase battery capacity, despite the fact that HfO2 is itself electrochemically inactive. The amorphous nature of HfO2 is an important factor in explaining its behavior, as it still allows sufficient Li diffusion for an efficient anode lithiation/delithiation process to occur, leading to higher battery capacity.

Regular Nanowires For a range of nanotechnology applications, semiconductor nanowires will need to be grown with high precision and control. Chou et al. (p. 281 ) studied the growth of gallium phosphide (GaP) nanowires using chemical vapor deposition within a transmission electron microscope and worked out conditions that could generate regular and predictable wire growth.

We discuss the use of the alloy catalyst AgAu to grow silicon nanowires and Si/Ge heterojunctions. Nanoscale particles of the catalyst with compositions Ag:Au varying from 2:1 to 1:2 can be fabricated and used to form Si nanowires with high crystal quality, and SiGe interfaces that are close to atomically abrupt. In situ experiments in the TEM are essential for investigating the mechanisms of growth with these alloy catalysts. We describe the relationship between growth kinetics and catalyst state, as well as the environmental stability of the alloy catalysts.

We visualize atomic level dynamics during Si nanowire growth using aberration corrected environmental transmission electron microscopy, and compare with lower pressure results from ultra-high vacuum microscopy. We discuss the importance of higher pressure observations for understanding growth mechanisms and describe protocols to minimize effects of the higher pressure background gas.

Device integration on flexible or low-cost substrates has driven interest in the low-temperature growth of semiconductor nanostructures. Using in situ electron microscopy, we examine the Au-catalyzed growth of crystalline Ge at temperatures as low as 150 °C. For this materials system, the model for low temperature growth of nanowires, we find three distinct reaction pathways. The lowest temperature reactions are distinguished by the absence of any purely liquid state. From measurements of reaction rates and parameters such as supersaturation, we explain the sequence of pathways as arising from a kinetic competition between the imposed time scale for Ge addition and the inherent time scale for Ge nucleation. This enables an understanding of the conditions under which catalytic Ge growth can occur at very low temperatures, with implications for nanostructure formation on temperature-sensitive substrates.

Fabrication of Si-Ge nanowire heterostructures offers great design flexibility in device applications, provided the interfaces are defect-free and compositionally abrupt. We use in-situ transmission electron microscopy to study nanowire growth, and find that abrupt Si-Ge interfaces can be fabricated in nanowires by a growth method that uses a solid AlAu2 catalyst. Growth of uniform segments of SiGe alloy in Si nanowires with sharp interfaces can also be realized using this method. We present in-situ measurements of nanowire growth kinetics and discuss the strain distribution and thermal stability in Si/Ge and Si/Ge/Si nanowire junction structures.

A method for growing heteroepitaxial Si films on sapphire was developed using a 6 nm thin Al layer at substrate temperature of 600 °C. Subsequently, the growth of Si nanowires was demonstrated on these films at 490 °C without breaking vacuum. We characterized the properties of the Si films by Raman scattering, X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy and show that the crystal quality and dopant control are promising for photovoltaic applications.

We discuss the benefits of using metals other than Au to catalyze the growth of Si and Ge nanowires, emphasizing the opportunities that these non-conventional materials provide for tailoring electronic and structural nanowire properties. However, since these metals are more reactive than Au, their use creates constraints on wire growth conditions as well as difficulties in post-growth characterization. These issues are illustrated for Si and Si/Ge nanowires grown from Al, Cu and AuAl starting materials. The vacuum requirements for the deposition of the reactive metals are discussed as well as the effect of atmospheric exposure on the structure of wires observed post-growth with electron microscopy.

The chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of Si and Ge on Si(0 0 1) substrates covered by 1 monolayer of Ga has been studied. Ga modifies surface reactivity and surface atom mobility. We show that islanding occurs during Ga-mediated CVD even in the absence of strain, allowing for the formation of islands without a wetting layer or with a thinner wetting layer. The morphology of the grown layer is highly dependent on kinetic parameters, i.e. growth temperature and growth pressure, that control Si and Ge deposition and Ga desorption. Si Ga-mediated CVD promotes the formation of self-assembled epitaxial Si islands exhibiting {1 1 3} facets. Ge islands grown by Ga-mediated CVD present reduced lateral sizes and an increased surface density compared to non Ga-mediated CVD. The growth morphology (particularly island size and density) can be understood by considering a qualitative model in which atoms are deposited only on sites whose dangling bonds are not passivated by Ga. We suggest that modification of surface reactivity during surfactant-mediated CVD can thus provide a new degree of freedom for quantum dot fabrication.

We measured the nucleation and growth kinetics of solid silicon (Si) from liquid gold-silicon (AuSi) catalyst particles as the Si supersaturation increased, which is the first step of the vapor-liquid-solid growth of nanowires. Quantitative measurements agree well with a kinetic model, providing a unified picture of the growth process. Nucleation is heterogeneous, occurring consistently at the edge of the AuSi droplet, yet it is intrinsic and highly reproducible. We studied the critical supersaturation required for nucleation and found no observable size effects, even for systems down to 12 nanometers in diameter. For applications in nanoscale technology, the reproducibility is essential, heterogeneity promises greater control of nucleation, and the absence of strong size effects simplifies process design.

Controlled formation of non-equilibrium crystal structures is one of the most important challenges in crystal growth. Catalytically grown nanowires are ideal systems for studying the fundamental physics of phase selection, and could lead to new electronic applications based on the engineering of crystal phases. Here we image gallium arsenide (GaAs) nanowires during growth as they switch between phases as a result of varying growth conditions. We find clear differences between the growth dynamics of the phases, including differences in interface morphology, step flow and catalyst geometry. We explain these differences, and the phase selection, using a model that relates the catalyst volume, the contact angle at the trijunction (the point at which solid, liquid and vapour meet) and the nucleation site of each new layer of GaAs. This model allows us to predict the conditions under which each phase should be observed, and use these predictions to design GaAs heterostructures. These results could apply to phase selection in other nanowire systems.

Nanowire growth by the vapour-liquid-solid (VLS) process enables a high level of control over nanowire composition, diameter, growth direction, branching and kinking, periodic twinning, and crystal structure. The tremendous impact of VLS-grown nanowires is due to this structural versatility, generating applications ranging from solid-state lighting and single-photon sources to thermoelectric devices. Here, we show that the morphology of these nanostructures can be further tailored by using the liquid droplets that catalyse nanowire growth as a 'mixing bowl', in which growth materials are sequentially supplied to nucleate new phases. Growing within the liquid, these phases adopt the shape of faceted nanocrystals that are then incorporated into the nanowires by further growth. We demonstrate this concept by epitaxially incorporating metal-silicide nanocrystals into Si nanowires with defect-free interfaces, and discuss how this process can be generalized to create complex nanowire-based heterostructures.

Measurements of solution-phase crystal growth provide mechanistic information that is helpful in designing and synthesizing nanostructures. Here, we examine the model system of individual Au nanocrystal formation within a defined liquid geometry during electron beam irradiation of gold chloride solution, where radiolytically formed hydrated electrons reduce Au ions to solid Au. By selecting conditions that favor the growth of well-faceted Au nanoprisms, we measure growth rates of individual crystals. The volume of each crystal increases linearly with irradiation time at a rate unaffected by its shape or proximity to neighboring crystals, implying a growth process that is controlled by the arrival of atoms from solution. Furthermore, growth requires a threshold dose rate, suggesting competition between reduction and oxidation processes in the solution. Above this threshold, the growth rate follows a power law with dose rate. To explain the observed dose rate dependence, we demonstrate that a reaction-diffusion model is required that explicitly accounts for the species H(+) and Cl(-). The model highlights the necessity of considering all species present when interpreting kinetic data obtained from beam-induced processes, and suggest conditions under which growth rates can be controlled with higher precision.

Germanium nanowires grown by chemical vapor deposition exhibit a peculiar dopant incorporation mechanism. The dopant atoms, such as boron and phosphorus, get incorporated through the wire surface, a mechanism which limits the doping modulation along the wire length, and therefore the fabrication of more elaborate structures that combine both n- and p-type doping. Using a novel device design that circumvents these constraints, we demonstrate here a linear Ge nanowire p-n junction.

We compare in-situ electron microscopy observations of Ge island growth on Si surfaces modulated by different techniques. Si(001) substrates were patterned either using a focused Ga ion beam or lithographically to produce similar feature sizes. In the case of the focused-ion-beam patterned substrates, chemical or strain effects caused by low Ga doses control the positions at which islands nucleate. Nucleation on topographically modulated substrates, with the pattern produced either by high-dose sputtering or lithographically, is controlled by the nature of the side walls of topographic features. The two patterning approaches have different benefits in creating arrays of islands for device applications.

Photoemission Electron Microscopy was used to determine basic factors for nucleation and growth of thin pentacene films. Dependence of both substrate chemistry and deposition rate on the nucleation density was observed. On SiO2 pentacene shows a high nucleation density and forms small islands consisting of almost vertically oriented molecules. On Si(001) the nucleation density of this thin-film phase is much smaller, but the pentacene film first forms a flat-lying wetting layer. The thin-film phase only forms on top of this wetting layer. Adsorption of a cyclohexene self-assembled monolayer on Si(001) prior to the pentacene growth suppresses the initial pentacene wetting layer but maintains diffusion parameters similar to pentacene on Si(001). The nucleation of pentacene layers on cyclohexene/Si(001) can be described by classical nucleation theory with a critical nucleus size i≈6. Simple surface modification techniques such as e-beam irradiation of the substrates prior to pentacene adsorption can also have a significant effect on the pentacene nucleation density.

We have usedin situelectron microscopy to observe the nucleation of Ge islands on lithographically patterned Si(001) mesas. Images were obtained at video rate during chemical vapor deposition of Ge, using a reflection electron microscopy geometry that allows nucleation to be observed over large areas. By comparing the kinetics of nucleation and coarsening on substrates modified by different annealing conditions, we find that the final island arrangement depends on the nature of the mesa sidewalls, and we suggest that this may be due to changes in diffusion of Ge across the nonplanar surface.

The formation of abrupt Si/Ge heterointerfaces in nanowires presents useful possibilities for bandgap engineering. We grow Si nanowires containing thick Ge layers and sub-1 nm thick Ge “quantum wells” and measure the interfacial strain fields using geometric phase analysis. Narrow Ge layers show radial compressive strains of several percent, while stress at the Si/Ge interface causes lattice rotation. High strains can be achieved in these heterostructures, but we show that they are unstable to interdiffusion.

The equilibrium thermal roughening of thin Ge layers (one and two monolayers) deposited on Si(001) has been investigated with low-energy electron microscopy. A Ge-coverage-dependent roughening is observed. For two monolayers, the temperature at which imaging contrast is lost due to surface roughness is $900\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}25\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}\mathrm{C}$, between the roughening temperatures of Ge(001) and Si(001). Lower Ge coverages move this temperature closer to that of Si(001). The roughening is confined to the Ge overlayers. It is believed that this phenomenon represents a new type of surface roughening transition that should be generally applicable for heteroepitaxial films.

The rate of misfit strain relaxation in semiconductor heterostructures is controlled by the kinetics of misfit dislocation nucleation, propagation and interaction. Although there have been a number of detailed theoretical studies of the dislocation–dislocation interaction process in these systems, there exist limited experimental data regarding the regime of epilayer thickness and composition where these interactions affect strain relaxation. Because of its high spatial and temporal resolution, in-situ transmission electron microscopy is an ideal experimental tool with which to observe dislocation interactions. In this work, the unique capabilities of an ultrahigh vacuum transmission electron microscope have been exploited to permit direct, real-time observation of dislocation interactions. This microscope is equipped with in-situ chemical vapour deposition capabilities which allow imaging of dislocation motion during both growth and annealing of SiGe/Si (001) heterostructures. This has permitted...

Real-time observations were made of the shape change from pyramids to domes during the growth of germanium-silicon islands on silicon (001). Small islands are pyramidal in shape, whereas larger islands are dome-shaped. During growth, the transition from pyramids to domes occurs through a series of asymmetric transition states with increasing numbers of highly inclined facets. Postgrowth annealing of pyramids results in a similar shape change process. The transition shapes are temperature dependent and transform reversibly to the final dome shape during cooling. These results are consistent with an anomalous coarsening model for island growth.

We describe observations of the growth kinetics of nanosize islands in two heteroepitaxial systems, Ge/Si and CoSi 2 /Si. Growth was carried out during continuous observation in a modified ultra high vacuum transmission electron microscope. Ge islands were grown on Si(100) at 650°C using chemical vapour deposition and CoSi 2 islands were grown by reactive epitaxy by evaporating Co onto a Si(111) substrate heated to 900°C. By analysing real-time observations of the development of individual islands, we show how the factors controlling island nucleation, growth and relaxation in these systems can be identified and understood. We discuss how the growth of these “quantum dots” may be controlled for novel electronic and optoelectronic applications.

We demonstrate that strained GeSi/Si heterostructures act as a model system for the study of the interaction of propagating dislocations with point, line and planar defects. In such heterostructures, the effective stress acting on a propagating dislocation may be varied from tens of MPa to of order 1 GPa, and the length of the propagating dislocation segment may be varied from nm to hundreds of nm. Results are presented from the interaction of strain-relieving dislocations with GeSi free surfaces, with point defects generated by ion implantation, and with other dislocations.

Low energy electron microscopy (LEEM) has developed into one of the premier techniques for in situ studies of surface dynamical processes, such as epitaxial growth, phase transitions, chemisorption and strain relaxation phenomena. Over the last three years we have designed and constructed a new LEEM instrument, aimed at improved resolution, improved diffraction capabilities and greater ease of operation compared to present instruments.

The in situ transmission electron microscope allows us to visualise processes occurring at surfaces and interfaces in real time and is therefore capable of providing detailed, quantitative information about reaction mechanisms. We have used a UHV TEM equipped with in situ growth capabilities to study the process of chemical vapour deposition of Ge on Si(100), with particular emphasis on the formation of self-assembled, nanosize Ge islands. Video-rate image acquisition enables us to track the development of individual islands from nucleation onwards and to observe the introduction of dislocations as the strained islands relax. For islands less than 80 nm in diameter, which are coherently strained, we observe an interesting coarsening process during growth. This coarsening results in a bimodal distribution of island sizes at certain times and a narrow size distribution at later times. We explain the phenomenon by a model in which coarsening occurs among a population of islands for which the equilibrium island shape depends on the size. Numerical simulations of coarsening in the presence of a shape transition are in good agreement with experiment. As the islands grow larger, dislocations form and we observe rapid shape changes associated with dislocation introduction. These changes can also be understood by considering a strain-dependent island shape. The insight that these results provide into the understanding of island growth and evolution can be used to develop arrays of uniformly sized islands ("quantum dots") for a variety of potential applications.

We have measured the velocity of misfit dislocation threading segments in real time during ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) chemical vapor deposition heteroepitaxial growth of thin SiGe epilayers on Si (001) using ultrahigh vacuum transmission electron microscopy. We observe no measurable difference in dislocation velocities during growth and during post-growth annealing of samples with an atomically clean surface, in contrast to previous observations in the InGaAs/GaAs (001) system. However, dislocations are seen to move approximately three times slower during growth and post-growth UHV annealing than during annealing of samples which have a native oxide present on the surface. We have used post-growth depositions of arsenic and oxygen to investigate the effect of surface condition on dislocation velocities, and discuss possible causes for the increase in dislocation velocities in the presence of a native oxide. These systematic studies suggest a hitherto unappreciated interaction between moving dislocations and t...

We describe a new approach for achieving controlled spatial placement of VLS-grown nanowires that uses an oxygen-reactive seed material and an oxygen-containing mask. Oxygen-reactive seed materials are of great interest for electronic applications, yet they cannot be patterned using the approaches developed for noble metal seed materials such as Au. This new process, nanoscale chemical templating, takes advantage of the reactivity of the blanket seed layer by depositing it over a patterned oxide that reacts with the seed material to prevent nanowire growth in undesired locations. Here we demonstrate this technique using Al as the seed material and SiO2 as the mask, and we propose that this methodology will be applicable to other reactive metals that are of interest for nanowire growth. The method has other advantages over conventional patterning approaches for certain applications including reducing patterning steps, flexibility in lithographic techniques, and high growth yields. We demonstrate its application with standard and microsphere lithography. We show a high growth yield and fidelity, with no NWs between openings and a majority of openings occupied by a single vertical nanowire, and discuss the dependence of yield on parameters.

We use ultrahigh vacuum transmission electron microscopy (UHV-TEM) to study the growth of Ge on Si(001) in real time at different temperatures and for coverages ranging from the initial monolayers to the development and relaxation of 3D islands. During growth of the first monolayers the surface gradually changes from a disordered missing-dimer structure to a rather well ordered (2 × 8) reconstruction, an evolution clearly resolved by the TEM. As the coverage is increased 3D islands starts to form. The growth and relaxation of these islands are shown to depend significantly on the temperature, e.g. with different dislocations formed at high and low temperatures. We interpret this difference in terms of the brittle-ductile transition in Ge, below which dislocation glide is frozen out. An interesting observation is that islands grown at low temperatures are more fully relaxed than those grown at higher temperatures. At high enough temperature the islands are initially, up to a specific size, coherent with the substrate and further growth occurs in a remarkably oscillatory fashion with the introduction of each (60°-type) dislocation, where the core of the island, of about 2000 A in diameter, remains fully strained. However, in the low-temperature regime the islands grow relaxed from the outset with pure edge dislocations continuously being introduced in the moving edges. For temperatures less than 600°C the transition from 2D to 3D growth occurs via the formation of small and strained 3D islands, so-called “hut clusters”. We monitor the nucleation and characteristics of these clusters and discuss their possible role in the formation of relaxed 3D islands. The different growth mechanisms are discussed in terms of a simple model for the energetics of strain-relaxed islands, leading to a qualitative description of the temperature-dependent growth modes.

We have used the UHV-TEM to study the growth of Ge on Si(111) in situ, from the deposition of the first monolayer to complete relaxation by the introduction of dislocations. We show that, at 650°C, the growth of Ge islands is dominated by steps on the surface. Indeed, islands nucleated on steps that run along the 〈 11 2 ¯ 〉 direction have a very high aspect ratio, while other islands are roughly triangular in shape. Dislocations form initially exclusively by coalescence of these smaller islands. Further growth involves a complicated competition between surrounding strained islands and the relaxed island. At lower temperature (350°C), steps still are a preferred site for island formation, but the limited surface diffusion makes it possible for islands to also nucleate on flat terraces. In this case, an island grows by incorporating dislocations at its edge, which results in a completely relaxed island from the start, and a very uniform network of dislocations. These in situ electron microscopy studies reveal a much more complicated and rich growth process than previously imagined, and tie previously obtained results together into a single picture.

We report the effects of ultrahigh vacuum and nitrogen annealing on self-aligned W-gated HfO2 n-field-effect transistors. While rapid thermal annealing in a nitrogen ambient significantly improved the channel mobility, there is a corresponding increase in the gate dielectric thickness of up to 20A. Here we show that this increase is due to the formation of interfacial oxides between the HfO2 and the silicon, caused by the diffusion of oxygen from the W gates. The results point to the importance of oxygen solubility in metals, which may be significant in many candidate gate electrodes.

By combining in situ and ex situ transmission electron microscopy measurements, we examine the factors that control the morphology of “hybrid” nanowires that include group III–V and group IV materials. We focus on one materials pair, GaP/Si, for which we use a wide range of growth parameters. We show through video imaging that nanowire morphology depends on growth conditions, but that a general pattern emerges where either single kinks or inclined defects form some distance after the heterointerface. We show that pure Si nanowires can be made to exhibit the same kinks and defects by changing their droplet volume. From this we derive a model where droplet geometry drives growth morphology and discuss optimization strategies. We finally discuss morphology control for material pairs where the second material kinks immediately at the heterointerface and show that an interlayer between segments can enable the growth of unkinked hybrid nanowires.

We demonstrate that the nucleation sites of nanoscale, self-assembled Ge islands on Si(001) can be controlled by patterning the Si surface in situ with a focused ion beam. At low doses of 6000 Ga+ ions per

We use focused beams of Ga(+), Au(+) and Si(++) ions to induce local microstructural changes in single crystal silicon. The ions were delivered as single spot pulses into thin Si membranes that could subsequently be imaged and annealed in situ in a transmission electron microscope. For each ion, the focused ion beam implantation created an array of amorphous regions in the crystalline membrane. Annealing causes solid phase epitaxial regrowth to take place, but we show that the resulting microstructure depends on the ion species. For Ga(+) and Au(+), precipitates remain after recrystallization, while for Si(++), dislocation loops form around the periphery of each implanted spot. We attribute these loops to defects formed during solid phase epitaxial regrowth, with controlled placement of the loops possible.

Many of the proposed high permittivity gate dielectrics for silicon-based microelectronics rely on a stack configuration, with an SiO2 buffer layer to provide an interface. We describe a means for creating gate dielectrics with a direct yttrium silicate–silicon interface through the solid-state reaction of yttria and silicon oxynitride, avoiding the preparation of an oxide-free silicon surface. Characterization by medium-energy ion scattering indicates complete consumption of the underlying oxide through silicate formation during high-temperature annealing. Furthermore, the silicate dielectric exhibits small flat-band voltage shifts, indicating low quantities of charge, without passivation steps. Creation of a silicate–silicon interfaces by a simple route may enable the study of an alternate class of dielectrics.

Carrier lifetimes of Si micro/nanowires grown by the vapor-liquid-solid method are measured using an extension of the classic contactless photoconductivity decay method. The samples measured consist of a thin aggregated film of oxide passivated wires on a fused silica carrier. Au catalyzed wires in the 392-730 nm diameter range are studied. Recombination in these wires is controlled by the surface or near surface effects, not bulk Au impurities. The lifetimes of Au- and Al-catalyzed wires of comparable diameter are measured. The Al wires are found to have slightly longer lifetimes than those grown with Au at a comparable diameter. Across all samples, the lifetimes measured range was from 0.2 to 1.0 ns. The surface controlled nature of the recombination measured implies larger diameter wires will offer better performance in devices that rely on minority carrier transport.

Nanowire growth in the standard111direction is assumed to occur at a planar catalyst-nanowire interface, but recent reports contradict this picture. Here we show that a nonplanar growth interface is, in fact, a general phenomenon. Both III-V and group IV nanowires show a distinct region at the trijunction with a different orientation whose size oscillates during growth, synchronized with step flow. We develop an explicit model for this structure that agrees well with experiment and shows that the oscillations provide a direct visualization of catalyst supersaturation. We discuss the implications for wire growth and structure.

The nanopatterning of semiconductors and other surfaces in a controlled manor is of a great interest for industrial application. The current technique is a new method of controlling the spatial placement of the growth of nanowires (NWs) seeded with oxygen reactive materials such as aluminum, which is a standard metal in silicon process line. The technique is based about patterning a semiconductor substrate or other like substrate which is capable of forming a semiconductor alloy with an oxygen reactive element during a subsequent annealing step. Moreover, it does not require removal of the patterned compound oxide layer.