Directed growth of single-crystal indium wires

Tailored electric fields were used to direct the dendritic growth of crystalline indium wires between lithographic electrodes immersed in solutions of indium acetate. Determination of the conditions that suppress sidebranching on these structures has enabled the fabrication of arbitrarily long needle-shaped wires with diameters as small as 370 nm. Electron diffraction studies indicate that these wires are crystalline indium, that the unbranched wire segments are single-crystal domains, and that the predominant growth direction is near < 110 >. This work constitutes a critical step towards the use of simply prepared aqueous mixtures as a convenient means of controlling the composition of submicron, crystalline wires. (c) 2006 American Institute of Physics.