Inuence of Gold-Copper Alloy Catalyst Composition on Crystal Growth and Dopant Distribution in Silicon and Germanium Nanowires

A combination of local electrode atom probe tomography (LEAP) and transmission electron microscopy characterization were used to investigate growth of and dopant incorporation in silicon and germanium nanowires (Si and GeNWs) via the vapor-liquid- solid (VLS) mechanism. A sample structure was developed that enabled isolation of the catalyst-mediated contribution to doping in individual nanowires during LEAP analysis. As a result, the distribution coefficient - a thermodynamic quantity describing axial junction abruptness - was measured in nanowires for the first time, providing a fundamental framework for comparison of junction abruptness in nanowires. These investigations also enabled the identification of a previously unknown radial anisotropy in dopant incorporation through the catalyst, with variations in dopant concentration across the VLS-defined diameter of the nanowire as large as two orders of magnitude. Finite element modeling of the doping process, coupled with in situ TEM observations reported in the literature, suggests that this radially inhomogeneous dopant distribution is a direct consequence of growth from a faceted liquid-solid interface, rather than the commonly assumed planar interface.;Au-Cu alloy catalysts were explored as alternatives to Au-catalyzed VLS nanowire growth as a means to alleviate or eliminate axial and radial doping gradients in nanowires. Both an aqueous solution and electron beam lithographic method for creating Au-Cu alloy catalysts of controlled composition were developed, and GeNW growth was demonstrated from both types of catalyst. LEAP characterization of Au-Cu alloy catalyzed P-doped GeNWs revealed that alloying with Cu results in more abrupt axial doping junctions, as well as a more homogeneous radial distribution of dopants within the VLS-defined diameter of the nanowire.