Effect of workfunction on the growth of electrodeposited Cu, Ni and Co nanowires

The effect of workfunction on the metal nanowire growth by XRD, SEM and Potentiostat is studied. The metal with a smaller workfunction has a higher current density, i.e. I(Cu)>I(Co)>I(Ni). The preferential growth plane is atomically rough surface like hcp(101¯0) for Co, and fcc(110) for Cu and Ni. We argued that the current arises from electron tunneling from metal surface to hydrated metal and hydrogen ions. The metal with a smaller workfunction has a thinner barrier for tunneling, leading to higher current density. An atomically rough surface has smaller workfunction and grows preferentially.