Controlled fabrication of poly- and single-crystalline bismuth nanowires

Poly- and single-crystalline Bi nanowires are fabricated by electrochemical deposition in etched ion-track membranes. Two deposition parameters, voltage and temperature, strongly influence the nanowires' morphology and texture. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) reveal that potentiostatically deposited nanowires are (110) textured, the texture increasing for wires deposited at higher temperatures and smaller overpotentials. At T = 60 degrees C and low overpotentials, single-crystalline wires are produced. Wires deposited with reverse pulses exhibit a (100) texture, which is more pronounced for shorter cathodic cycles and higher anodic voltages. They consist of several crystals of size at least similar to 0.5 mu m.