Controlled Al-Doped Single-Crystalline 6H-SiC Nanowires

We report for the first time the synthesis of Al-doped 6H-SiC nanowires with high yield and high quality. The nanowires were obtained by the catalyst-assisted pyrolysis of polymeric precursors with FeCl2 as the catalyst. The doping concentrations were controlled by tailoring the Al concentrations in the precursors. It was observed that the Al dopants caused red-shifts of the photoluminescence bands. The results suggest a simple technique to synthesize Al-doped SiC nanomaterials in a controlled manner. The obtained nanowires could be useful for making optical and electronic nanodevices.