Self-catalytic growth of silicon nanowires on stainless steel

Silicon nanowires were grown on a stainless steel substrate using a vapor–liquid–solid mechanism in self-catalytic mode. The multi-component Fe–Cr–Ni–Mn–Si catalyst that was formed from the substrate leads the growth of single-crystal Si nanowires with lengths of several micrometers and diameters ranging from 100 to 150 nm. A systematic investigation of the processing parameters revealed that the hydrogen flow rate is critical to the growth of the nanowires. At a high flow rate that exceeds 1000 sccm, the substrate is embrittled by H2, and liquid droplets, which lead the growth of nanowires by the vapor–liquid–solid mechanism, are formed on the substrate. Electrical transport measurements indicated that the nanowires grown with the multi-component catalyst have electrical properties comparable to those grown by a single-component Ti catalyst.