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Self-assembled formation of long, thin, and uncoalesced GaN nanowires on crystalline TiN films

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Abstract

We investigate in detail the self-assembled nucleation and growth of vertically oriented GaN nanowires by molecular beam epitaxy on crystalline TiN films. We demonstrate that this type of substrate allows for the growth of long and thin GaN nanowires that do not suffer from coalescence, a problem common to the growth on Si and other substrates. Only beyond a certain nanowire length that depends on the nanowire density and exceeds here 1.5 μm, coalescence takes place by bundling, i.e. the same process as on Si. By analyzing the nearest neighbor distance distribution, we identify the diffusion-induced repulsion of neighboring nanowires as the main mechanism limiting nanowire density during nucleation on TiN. Since on Si the final density is determined by shadowing of the impinging molecular beams by existing nanowires, it is the difference in adatom surface diffusion that enables the formation of nanowire ensembles with reduced density on TiN. These nanowire ensembles combine properties that make them a promising basis for the growth of core–shell heterostructures.

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Acknowledgement

We are grateful to C. Stemmler, H.-P. Schönherr, and C. Herrmann for the maintenance of the MBE system, and A.-K. Bluhm for the SE micrographs. Furthermore, we are thankful to T. Auzelle for a critical reading of the manuscript. Financial support of this work by the Leibniz-Gemeinschaft (No. SAW-2013-PDI-2) is gratefully acknowledged.

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  1. Paul-Drude-Institut für Festkörperelektronik, Leibniz-Institut im Forschungsverbund Berlin e.V., Hausvogteiplatz 5–7, 10117, Berlin, Germany

    David van Treeck, Gabriele Calabrese, Jelle J. W. Goertz, Vladimir M. Kaganer, Oliver Brandt, Sergio Fernández-Garrido & Lutz Geelhaar

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  1. David van Treeck
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  2. Gabriele Calabrese
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van Treeck, D., Calabrese, G., Goertz, J.J.W. et al. Self-assembled formation of long, thin, and uncoalesced GaN nanowires on crystalline TiN films. Nano Res. 11, 565–576 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-017-1717-x

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