Articles you may be interested inEffect of relative vapor pressure on separation of nanoscale contact in atomic force microscope Epitaxial NiSi 2 has been grown on ͑001͒Si inside 50-200 nm Si 3 N 4 openings prepared by atomic force microscope tip-induced local oxidation. The morphology of epitaxial NiSi 2 was found to be significantly influenced by the opening size. For specific annealing conditions, there exists a transitional opening size below which a pyramidal faceted structure of epitaxial NiSi 2 is preferred. The opening size effect is attributed to a limited supply of Ni atoms, the increased interface/volume ratio of silicides with decreasing size of openings, and the considerable stress level inside miniature openings.

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