Synthesis of β-FeSi2 nanowires by using silicon nanowire templates

Abstract

Si nanowires templates were grown by a Cu-catalyzed vapor–liquid–solid process and used for the preparation of β-FeSi2 nanowires on a Si substrate. The silicon nanowires were transformed into β-FeSi2 nanowires by annealing with additional source material containing FeCl2 and Si powder. In contrast to uniform Si nanowire templates along the direction, the synthesized nanowires were deformed irregularly. The electron diffraction pattern of the nanowires synthesized from the template corresponded to that of single-crystalline β-FeSi2 and the longitudinal direction of the nanowire was along the direction. The energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence analysis confirmed that the nanowire contained Fe and Si in an atomic ratio of approximately 1:2. The results confirmed that β-FeSi2 nanowires on a Si substrate were synthesized from the Si nanowire templates.