Solid-liquid-solid (SLS) growth of coaxial nanocables: silicon carbide sheathed with silicon oxide

Coaxial silicon carbide-silicon oxide nanocables on silicon substrates were synthesized from the ternary system of SiNi-C at 950 degreesC under Ar/H-2 atmosphere. The nanocables consist of a hexagonal crystalline SiC core and a surface layer of amorphous silicon oxide, which have an average diameter of similar to 50 nm and a length of several tens of microns. The microstru cture and composition of the nanocables were characterized using high-resol ution transmission electron microscope (HREM), and electron energy loss spe ctroscopy (EELS), and the growth mechanism of the nanocables was explained under the framework of a solid-liquid-solid (SLS) mechanism. (C) 2001 Elsev ier Science B.V. All rights reserved.