Abstract
The selective formation of porous silicon in nanowires is observed in Si/Ge epitaxial layers along Ge layers grown by molecular beam epitaxy on a Si(100) substrate after metal-assisted chemical etching in aqueous HF-H2O2 solution. We assume that Ge layers serve as channels for a hole current out of the semiconductor to sustain the dissolution reaction. The tunnelling of holes through the potential barrier at the semiconductor surface is assumed to be the dominating mechanism of the hole transfer to the electrolyte.
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Acknowledgments
The authors are grateful to S.Hopfe, C. Münx, A. Frommfeld, S. Schlenker and N. Wollschläger for the technical support. The financial support of the German National science foundation (DFG-RFBR No 436/RUS 113), the BMBF project WING, and the Federal ministry of education and science (03X3541) are kindly acknowledged.
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Tonkikh, A.A., Geyer, N., Fuhrmann, B. et al. Pathway of Porous Silicon Formation Inside Si Nanowires Throughout Metal Assisted Etching. MRS Online Proceedings Library 1408, 95–100 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1557/opl.2012.727
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1557/opl.2012.727