Ga2O3 nanowires prepared by physical evaporation

Gallium oxide nanowires (GaONWs) were obtained by evaporation from a bulk gallium target. The GaONWs, with mean diameter around 60 nm, are of monocrystalline nature with length up to 100 mu m, and identified to be monoclinic Ga2O3 with space group of C2/m. The growth of the GaONWs is not controlled by the well-known vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) mechanism, instead they are seemingly grown via a vapor-solid (VS) process, in which the structural defects play an important role both during the nucleation and the preferable axial growth of the wires. Understanding such a growth process would be helpful in the synthesis of other quasi one-dimensional nanostructures. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.