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Surface Crystallization of Liquid Au-Si and Its Impact on Catalysis
Federico Panciera1,2, Jerry Tersoff2, Andrew D Gamalski3
1Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, 9 J. J. Thomson Avenue, Cambridge, CB3 0FA, UK.
Abstract:
In situ transmission electron microscopy reveals that an atomically thin crystalline phase at the surface of liquid Au-Si is stable over an unexpectedly wide range of conditions. By measuring the surface structure as a function of liquid temperature and composition, a simple thermodynamic model is developed to explain the stability of the ordered phase. The presence of surface ordering plays a key role in the pathway by which the Au-Si eutectic solidifies and also dramatically affects the catalytic properties of the liquid, explaining the anomalously slow growth kinetics of Si nanowires at low temperature. A strategy to control the presence of the surface phase is discussed, using it as a tool in designing strategies for nanostructure growth.
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