Gold-catalyzed vapor-liquid-solid germanium-nanowire nucleation on porous silicon

Nanoporous Si(111) substrates are used to study the effects of Au catalyst coarsening on the nucleation of vapor-liquid-solid-synthesized epitaxial Ge nanowires (NWs) at temperatures less than 400 degrees C. Porous Si substrates, with greater effective interparticle separations for Au surface diffusion than nonporous Si, inhibit catalyst coarsening and agglomeration prior to NW nucleation. This greatly reduces the variation in wire diameter and length and increases the yield compared to nucleation on identically prepared nonporous Si substrates.