Semiconductor heterostructures with modulated composition and/or doping enable passivation of interfaces and the generation of devices with diverse functions. In this regard, the control of interfaces in nanoscale building blocks with high surface area will be increasingly important in the assembly of electronic and photonic devices. Core-shell heterostructures formed by the growth of crystalline overlayers on nanocrystals offer enhanced emission efficiency, important for various applications. Axial heterostructures have also been formed by a one-dimensional modulation of nanowire composition and doping. However, modulation of the radial composition and doping in nanowire structures has received much less attention than planar and nanocrystal systems. Here we synthesize silicon and germanium core-shell and multishell nanowire heterostructures using a chemical vapour deposition method applicable to a variety of nanoscale materials. Our investigations of the growth of boron-doped silicon shells on intrinsic silicon and silicon-silicon oxide core-shell nanowires indicate that homoepitaxy can be achieved at relatively low temperatures on clean silicon. We also demonstrate the possibility of heteroepitaxial growth of crystalline germanium-silicon and silicon-germanium core-shell structures, in which band-offsets drive hole injection into either germanium core or shell regions. Our synthesis of core-multishell structures, including a high-performance coaxially gated field-effect transistor, indicates the general potential of radial heterostructure growth for the development of nanowire-based devices.

https://cml.harvard.edu/assets/nature420_57.pdf

Epitaxial core–shell and core–multishell nanowire heterostructures

The α-Fe2O3 with various morphologies has been successfully synthesized via an ionic liquid-assisted hydrothermal synthetic method. The samples are characterized by X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), transmission electron microscopy, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The results indicate that the as-prepared samples are α-Fe2O3 nanoparticles, mesoporous hollow microspheres, microcubes, and porous nanorods. The effects of the ionic liquid 1-n-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([bmim][Cl]) on the formation of the α-Fe2O3 with various morphologies have been investigated systematically. The proposed formation mechanisms have also been investigated on the basis of a series of FE-SEM studies of the products obtained at different durations. Because of the unique porous structure, the potential application in water treatment of the α-Fe2O3 porous nanorods was investigated. The UV−vis measurements suggest that the a...

Hematite (alpha-Fe2O3) with various morphologies: ionic liquid-assisted synthesis, formation mechanism, and properties.

Low-dimensional piezoelectric semiconductor nanomaterials, such as ZnO and GaN, have superior mechanical properties and can be integrated into flexible devices that can be subjected to large strain. More importantly, the coupling between piezoelectric polarization and semiconductor properties (for example, electronic transport and photoexcitation) in these materials gives rise to unprecedented device characteristics. This has increased research interest in the emerging fields of piezotronics and piezo-phototronics, which offer new means of manipulating charge-carrier transport, generation, recombination or separation in the controlled operation of flexible devices through the application of external mechanical stimuli. We review the recent progress in advancing our fundamental understanding and in realizing practical applications of piezotronics and piezo-phototronics, and provide an in-depth discussion of future research directions. Piezotronics and piezo-phototronics offer new means of implementing adaptive electronics and optoelectronics, taking advantage of the coupling between piezoelectric polarization and semiconductor properties in piezoelectric semiconductor nanomaterials. This Review discusses the recent progress in piezotronics and piezo-phototronics, as well as future research directions.

Piezotronics and piezo-phototronics for adaptive electronics and optoelectronics

Semiconductor nanowires represent unique materials for exploring phenomena at the nanoscale. Developments in nanowire growth have led to the demonstration of a wide range of nanowire materials with precise control of composition, morphology, and electrical properties, and it is believed that this excellent control together with small channel size could yield device performance exceeding that obtained using top-down techniques. Here, we review advances in chemically synthesized semiconductor nanowires as nanoelectronic devices. We first introduce basic nanowire field-effect transistor structures and review results obtained from both p- and n-channel homogeneous composition nanowires. Second, we describe nanowire heterostructures, show that by using nanowire heterostructures, several limiting factors in homogeneous nanowire devices can be mitigated, and demonstrate that nanowire transistor performance can reach the ballistic limit and exceed state-of-the-art planar devices. Third, we discuss basic methods for organization of nanowires necessary for fabricating arrays of device and circuits. Fourth, we introduce the concept of crossbar nanowire circuits, discuss results for both transistor and nonvolatile switch devices, and describe unique approaches for multiplexing/demultiplexing enabled by synthetically coded nanowire. Fifth, we discuss the unique application of thin-film nanowire transistor arrays on low-cost substrates and illustrate this with results for relatively high-frequency ring oscillators and completely transparent device arrays. Finally, we describe 3-D heterogeneous integration that is uniquely enabled by multifunctional nanowires within a bottom-up approach.

https://cml.harvard.edu/assets/IEEETransED_55-2859_Lu.pdf

Nanowire Transistor Performance Limits and Applications

The continuation of the remarkable exponential increases in processing power over the recent past faces imminent challenges due in part to the physics of deep-submicron CMOS devices and the costs of both chip masks and future fabrication plants. A promising solution to these problems is offered by an alternative to CMOS-based computing, chemically assembled electronic nanotechnology (CAEN).In this paper we outline how CAEN-based computing can become a reality. We briefly describe recent work in CAEN and how CAEN will affect computer architecture. We show how the inherently reconfigurable nature of CAEN devices can be exploited to provide high-density chips with defect tolerance at significantly reduced manufacturing costs. We develop a layered abstract architecture for CAEN-based computing devices and we present preliminary results which indicate that such devices will be competitive with CMOS circuits.

/pdf/nanofabrics-spatial-computing-using-molecular-electronics-5cu2328udh.pdf

NanoFabrics: spatial computing using molecular electronics

http://cmliris.harvard.edu/assets/science291_851.pdf

D. F. Sievenpiper

Papers

Functional Nanoscale Electronic Devices Assembled Using Silicon Nanowire Building Blocks