Growth of germanium nanowires from bis(acetylacetonato) dichloro germanium

Germanium nanowires were grown by chemical vapor deposition from a bis(acetylacetonato) dichloro germanium precursor. The advantages of this precursor are that it is a solid and sublimes at a relatively low temperature to produce pure germanium nanowires. The nanowires were grown on different substrates such as silicon and quartz and their diameters vary from 20 to 200 nm. X-ray diffraction, Raman and transmission electron microscopy analyses show that the nanowires are crystalline and exhibit germanium crystal structure. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.