Bismuth nanowires for potential applications in nanoscale electronics technology.
Nanowires of bismuth with diameters ranging from 10 to 200 nm and lengths of 50 microm have been synthesized by a pressure injection method. Nanostructural and chemical compositional studies using environmental and high resolution transmission electron microscopy with electron stimulated energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy have revealed essentially single crystal nanowires. The high resolution studies have shown that the nanowires contain amorphous Bi-oxide layers of a few nanometers on the surface. In situ environmental high resolution transmission electron microscopy (environmental-HRTEM) studies at the atomic level, in controlled hydrogen and other reducing gas environments at high temperatures demonstrate that gas reduction can be successfully applied to remove th oxide nanolayers and to maintain the dimensional and structural uniformity of the nanowires, which is key to attaining low electrical contact resistance.
Cronin
Stephen B
SB
Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
Lin
Yu-Ming
YM
Rabin
Oded
O
Black
Marcie R
MR
Dresselhaus
Gene
G
Dresselhaus
Mildred S
MS
Gai
Pratibha L
PL
D001729:Bismuth / Q000032:analysis*; D004559:Electric Wiring; D004577:Electron Probe Microanalysis; D004581:Electronics / Q000379:methods*; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000379:methods*
D001729:Bismuth