Self-assembled Fe nanowires using organometallic chemical vapor deposition and CaF2 masks on stepped Si(111)

Linear arrays of 3 nm wide Fe stripes with 15 nm spacing are fabricated by self-assembly. They are formed by photolysis of ferrocene that is selectively adsorbed between CaF2 stripes. An ultraviolet nitrogen laser removes the organic ligands from ferrocene. Arrays of CaF2 stripes serve as masks, which are self-assembled on a stepped Si(111) surface. Scanning tunneling microscopy is used to investigate the surface morphology during growth. A generalization of this method to other wire materials is discussed.