Nanostructures formed by Ag nanowires

Silver nanowires are prepared by electroplating into an anodic aluminium oxide (AAO) template. After the AAO template was removed by chemical etching, the surface of Ag nanowires was further modified by pulse DC electroplating. Various Ag nanobranches are grown on the surface of the Ag nanowire. This study discusses the influence of the pulse DC voltage and bias on the surface morphologies of Ag nanowires. The curvature of the nanowire surface is found to be the main factor in the growth of nanobranches. The surface morphology of the nanowire is adjustable by changing its growth rate. Radii of curvatures of the surfaces of approximately 33, 12 and 3 nm are obtained by electroplating at 1, 3 and 4 V DC voltages. respectively. The crystal size of a nanowire determined by x-ray diffraction analysis is almost independent of the growth conditions. Pulse DC electroplating conditions yield different growth rates of the nanobranch and create various surface morphologies of the nanowire. A more highly curved surface has a more localized charge and grows nanobranches faster. Surface roughness dominates the growth of nanobranches from silver nanowire.