Self-Seeded Axio-Radial InAs-InAs_1-xP_x Nanowire Heterostructures beyond "Common" VLS Growth

Semiconductors are essential for modern electronic and optoelectronic devices. To further advance the functionality of such devices, the ability to fabricate increasingly complex semiconductor nanostructures is of utmost importance. Nanowires offer excellent opportunities for new device concepts; heterostructures have been grown in either the radial or axial direction of the core nanowire but never along both directions at the same time. This is a consequence of the common use of a foreign metal seed particle with fixed size for nanowire heterostructure growth. In this work, we present for the first time a growth method to control heterostructure growth in both the axial and the radial directions simultaneously while maintaining an untapered self-seeded growth. This is demonstrated for the InAs/InAs_1-xP_x material system. We show how the dimensions and composition of such axio-radial nanowire heterostructures can be designed including the formation of a "pseudo-superlattice" consisting of five separate InAs_1-xP_x segments with varying length. The growth of axio-radial nanowire heterostructures offers an exciting platform for novel nanowire structures applicable for fundamental studies as well as nanowire devices. The growth concept for axio-radial nanowire heterostructures is expected to be fully compatible with Si substrates.