title: Electric-field-driven accumulation and alignment of CdSe and CdTe nanorods in nanoscale devices.
abstract: Local electric fields generated by nanopatterned electrodes were used to control the position and orientation of well-isolated as well as closely packed colloidal semiconducting CdTe and CdSe nanorods (NRs) drop-cast from solution. Postdeposition imaging using transmission-electron microscopy and atomic-force microscopy revealed strong NR alignment to the direction of the applied field and dense accumulation around and onto voltage-biased electrodes when deposited from dilute and concentrated solutions, respectively. The degree of alignment under the applied electric field is characterized by a nematic order parameter S approximately 0.8 in contrast to the zero-field case when S approximately 0.1.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Pennsylvania, 209 South 33rd Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA.
authors.forename: Zonghai
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.forename: Michael D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Fischbein
authors.forename: Claudia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Querner
authors.forename: Marija
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Drndić
mesh_terms: D019187:Cadmium Compounds / Q000737:chemistry*; D004574:Electromagnetic Fields; D008422:Materials Testing; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission / Q000379:methods; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D043942:Nanotubes / Q000737:chemistry*; D010316:Particle Size; D018036:Selenium Compounds / Q000737:chemistry*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013499:Surface Properties; D013691:Tellurium / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D019187:Cadmium Compounds; D018036:Selenium Compounds; C058667:cadmium selenide; D013691:Tellurium; C028337:cadmium telluride