Nature of heterointerfaces in GaAs/InAs and InAs/GaAs axial nanowire heterostructures

The structural and compositional characteristics of heterointerfaces of Au-catalyzed GaAs/InAs and InAs/GaAs axial nanowire heterostructures were comprehensively investigated by transmission electron microscopy. It has been found that the GaAs/InAs interface is not sharp and contains an InGaAs transition segment, and in contrast, the InAs/GaAs interface is atomically sharp. This difference in the nature of heterointerfaces can be attributed to the difference in the affinity of the group III elements with the catalyst material. (C) 2008 American Institute of Physics.