Formation of Silicon Nanowires by CVD Using Gold Catalysts at Low Temperatures

Silicon nanowires (SiNWs) on a {100} silicon wafer coated with a gold film were formed by thermal cracking of disilane at 473–573 K. The SiNWs were single-crystalline with 10–100 nm in diameter and a 〈111〉 crystal orientation. The optimum conditions for obtaining long SiNWs that are several hundred μm long include a disilane flow rate of 0.017 cm3/s, an argon gas flow rate of 0.33 cm3/s, and a total pressure of 0.67 kPa. The low-temperature formation of SiNWs was explained by lowering the melting point of Au–Si eutectic particles. Self-wiring of SiNWs between gold square dots placed 15 μm from each other was successfully conducted.