Controlling the diameter of silicon nanowires grown using a tin catalyst

Mahdi

et al. 2015

Silicon

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Silicon nanowire homojunction p-n solar cells were fabricated using Zn and Au metals as catalysts for growing the NWs. This design consisted of SiNWs, doped as p and n-types, catalyzed with Zn and Au catalysts to fabricate p-n homojunctions within each wire. The surface morphology, structure, and photovoltaic properties were investigated. The morphology for each of the catalyzed SiNWs was significantly different; the Zn catalyst produced short and thick NWs with diameters ranging from 190nm to 260nm, whereas the Au catalyst produced long SiNWs with diameters ranging from 140nm to 210nm. The Zncatalyzed SiNW p-n solar cell showed a higher efficiency of 1.01% compared with the Aucatalyzed SiNW p-n solar cell with an efficiency of 0.67%.

Section: Surface Morphologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fabrication and Characterization of Solar Cells Based on Silicon Nanowire Homojunctions

Mahdi

et al. 2015

Silicon

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“…The surface morphologies of SiNWs synthesized via PPECVD and catalyzed using various thicknesses of Zn are depicted in the FESEM images shown in Figure 1 Al-Taay et al [22,23], who found that using Sn and Al catalysts with varying thickness in the range of 10nm to 100nm led to an increase in the diameter of as-grown SiNWs by PPECVD.…”

Section: Surface Morphologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Growth and characterization of silicon nanowires catalyzed by Zn metal via Pulsed Plasma-Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition

Mahdi

Superlattices and Microstructures

et al. 2014

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This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain. 1 Growth and Characterization of Silicon Nanowires Catalyzed by Zn Metal Via Pulsed Plasma-Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition AbstractHigh-density silicon nanowires (SiNWs) were grown via Pulsed Plasma-EnhancedChemical Vapor Deposition at 400°C. Zinc (Zn) metal thin films with varying thickness from 10nm to 100nm were used as a catalyst to synthesize the SiNWs. The surface morphology, crystalline structure, and optical properties of the grown SiNWs were investigated. Results indicated that increasing the Zn thickness from 10nm to 100nm led to an increase in wire diameter from 65nm to 205nm, resulting in a reduction of SiNW density. The wires grown with Zn thicknesses of 10 and 80nm exhibited high crystallinity as shown by the X-ray diffraction patterns. Three emission bands (green, blue, and red) were observed in the photoluminescence spectra of the SiNWs prepared using various Zn catalyst thicknesses. The SiNWs prepared using 10 and 80nm Zn thicknesses displayed a sharp Raman peak that corresponded to the first-order 2 transverse optical phonon mode in contrast to the other samples that produced SiNWs with a broad Raman band.

“…The diffraction peaks of the prepared SiNWs correspond to the because the metal particles were located on top of the SiNWs. Comparing with the SiNWs prepared using Sn and Al catalysts with the same deposition conditions [9,27] , the Au catalyst 7 produced the highest crystallinity SiNWs that makes it the most suitable for solar cell applications.…”

Section: Crystalline Structurementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Furthermore, Qin et al [26] demonstrated that the diameter of SiNWs prepared via inductively coupled PCVD on Si wafers at 380 °C using 16 nm thick Au ranged from 90 nm to 130 nm and increased to 130 nm to 175 nm with a 40 nm thick Au catalyst, in agreement with our results. Al-Taay et al [27] found that the diameter of SiNWs grown by PPECVD using a Sn catalyst also increased as the catalyst thin film thickness increased. The SiNWs were randomly oriented relative to the substrate, and the mean wire length decreased from 12 µm to approximately 10 µm as the thickness of the catalyst film increased from 20 nm to 100 nm.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Structural and optical properties of Au-catalyzed SiNWs grown using pulsed plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition

Mahdi²,

Superlattices and Microstructures

et al. 2013

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This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain. AbstractSilicon nanowires (SiNWs) were grown on indium tin oxide-coated glass substrates using pulsed plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition (PPECVD) with gold (Au) as a catalyst.Various thicknesses of Au thin films ranging from 10 nm to 100 nm were deposited on the substrates by thermal evaporation. The surface morphological study of the prepared wires showed that the wire diameter increased as the catalyst film thickness increased. The X-ray diffraction patterns of the prepared SiNWs illustrated that the grown wires had cubic phase, and the crystallinity was enhanced as the catalyst thickness increased. The photoluminescence spectra of the SiNWs had a red emission band whose band location and shape were found to be dependent on catalyst thickness. The Raman spectra of the prepared nanowires showed that the first order transverse band shifted toward lower frequencies compared with the c-Si band location. The first order transverse band approached the c-Si band location as the wire diameter increased due to the increasing catalyst film thickness.