Self-assembly growth of high-quality SiC nanowires from Si thin films deposited on single-crystalline SiC wafers

Abstract It was recently reported that well-ordered graphene layers were directly grown on the surface of SiC single crystals by only thermal annealing. Based on this phenomenon, we successfully demonstrate the self-assembly growth of SiC nanowires from Si-deposited SiC. After deposition of Si thin films on SiC single crystals by sputtering, they were annealed at 1200 °C and 1400 °C for 10 h under Ar gas atmosphere. High-quality SiC nanowires were grown on the surface of Si-deposited SiC annealed at 1400 °C, while only graphitic carbon spheres were formed at 1200 °C. Carbon atoms, which originated from the SiC single crystals, diffused into the films and functioned as carbon sources for the growth of SiC nanowires. The Si thin films were oxidized during thermal annealing and acted as both the Si sources for SiC nanowires and the diffusion path of carbon atoms. We believe that this study can help advance the crystal growth of nanostructures on SiC and the preparation of SiC-based nanoelectronic devices for various applications such as field emission and power devices.