Single-polycrystalline core-shell silicon nanowires grown on copper

摘要

The growth of silicon core-shell nanowires with a crystalline-core and a polycrystalline-shell on copper substrates pretreated with carbon via Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition (PECVD) was demonstrated. The nanowire diameters range from 120 to 250nm with 10-20nm crystalline cores. The overall large diameter enables easier methods of forming an electrical/thermal contact while the small core maintains the benefits of nanowires. By altering the copper surface with carbon, highly dense silicon nanowire networks can be directly grown on copper substrates, which could allow for efficient and economical incorporation of silicon nanowires into such applications as thermoelectric devices.