Growth of ZnSe nanospirals with bending mediated by Lomer-Cottrell sessile dislocations through varying pressure

ZnSe nanospirals, with zinc blende structured building blocks exhibiting unconventional mosaic configuration, were successfully fabricated via a two-stage growth process, in which abrupt variation of reaction pressure was introduced. In-plane bending, with remarkable morphological difference from the commonly reported nanorings or nanohelixes induced by spontaneous polarization in II-VI semiconductors, has been observed, which can be mainly attributed to existence of numerous Lomer-Cottrell sessile dislocations with edge components. Investigations on morphological evolutions by applying different reaction pressure and growth time in the second stage imply that the formation of nanospirals is closely related to the pressure variation. The results may provide useful information for further understanding the strain release mechanism and mechanical response of ZnSe at the nanoscale.