Why does wurtzite form in nanowires of III-V zinc blende semiconductors?

• Published in: Physical review letters Vol. 99; no. 14; p. 146101
• Main Authors: Glas, Frank, Harmand, Jean-Christophe, Patriarche, Gilles
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 05.10.2007

We develop a nucleation-based model to explain the formation of the wurtzite phase during the catalyzed growth of freestanding nanowires of zinc blende semiconductors. We show that in vapor-liquid-solid nanowire growth, nucleation generally occurs preferentially at the triple phase line. This entail...