Self-induced growth of vertical free-standing InAs nanowires on Si(111) by molecular beam epitaxy

We report self-induced growth of vertically aligned (i.e. along the [111] direction), free-standing InAs nanowires on Si(111) substrates by solid-source molecular beam epitaxy. Implementation of an ultrathin amorphous SiO(x) mask on Si(111) facilitated epitaxial InAs nanowire growth, as confirmed by high-resolution x-ray diffraction 2theta-omega scans and transmission electron microscopy. Depending on growth temperature (in the range of 400-520 degrees C) substantial size variation of both nanowire length and diameter was found under preservation of uniform, non-tapered hexagon-shaped geometries. The majority of InAs nanowires exhibited phase-pure zinc blende crystal structure with few defective regions consisting of stacking faults. Photoluminescence spectroscopy at 20 K revealed peak emission of the InAs nanowires at 0.445 eV, which is approximately 30 meV blueshifted with respect to the emission of the bulk InAs reference due to radial quantum confinement effects. These results show a promising route towards integration of well-aligned, high structural quality InAs-based nanowires with the desired aspect ratio and tailored emission wavelengths on an Si platform.