title: Ordered silicon microwire arrays grown from substrates patterned using imprint lithography and electrodeposition.
abstract: Silicon microwires grown by the vapor-liquid-solid process have attracted a great deal of interest as potential light absorbers for solar energy conversion. However, the research-scale techniques that have been demonstrated to produce ordered arrays of micro and nanowires may not be optimal for use as high-throughput processes needed for large-scale manufacturing. Herein we demonstrate the use of microimprint lithography to fabricate patterned templates for the confinement of an electrodeposited Cu catalyst for the vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) growth of Si microwires. A reusable polydimethylsiloxane stamp was used to pattern holes in silica sol-gels on silicon substrates, and the Cu catalyst was electrodeposited into the holes. Ordered arrays of crystalline p-type Si microwires were grown across the sol-gel-patterned substrates with materials quality and performance comparable to microwires fabricated with high-purity metal catalysts and cleanroom processing.
authors.affiliation: Beckman Institute and Kavli Nanoscience Institute, 210 Noyes Laboratory, 127-72, Division of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, California Institute of Technology , Pasadena, California 91125, United States.
authors.forename: Heather A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Audesirk
authors.forename: Emily L
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Warren
authors.forename: Jessie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ku
authors.forename: Nathan S
authors.initials: NS
authors.lastname: Lewis
keywords: VLS; electrodeposition; imprint lithography; photoelectrochemistry; silicon microwire