TiOx/Ny nanowire arrays: NH3-assisted controllable vertical oriented growth and the electrophotochemical properties

In this research, a simple and facile approach was reported for the synthesis of highly oriented TiOx/Ny nanowire arrays that originated from TiO2 nanoparticles. The results indicated that nanowire arrays were fabricated with controllable lengths by adjusting the amount of NH3 under medium pressures. The preferable orientation of nanowires was (1 0 3) crystal facet, which led to remarkable Voc values in comparison with TiO2 nanoparticles. An NH3-assisted vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) growth mechanism was proposed for the direct growth of nanowire arrays from TiO2 nanoparticles.