Study of structural and electronic properties of metallic nanowires: Bi, Na, Cu, Pb

Abstract

The properties of electrons become more striking when progressing from the three- dimensional to lower dimensions; thus there is a need to investigate and recognize the properties of metallic structures at the nanoscale. Devices made from nanowires have several advantages over those made by photolithography. A variety of approaches have been devised to organize nanowires via self-assembly, thus eliminating the need for the expansive lithographic techniques normally required to produce devices of the size of typical nanowires. In the present work, an ab-initio self-consistent density functional method in the local density approximation is employed to study structural and electronic properties of some metallic nanowires such as Bismuth (Bin), Sodium (Na n), Copper (Cun), Lead (Pbn) where n=5. We explored the lowest energy structure and investigate the various physical properties of Bin, Nan, Cun, Pbn (n=5) nanowires. Calculations of lattice parameter, bond length, bond angle, binding energy (BE), internal energy, pressure, band structure and the density of states (DOS) have been carried out in a large energy interval for different isomeric forms like linear chain, zigzag, equilateral triangle, dumbbell, pyramidal, pentagonal, tetrahedral etc. and thereby analyzing the size effects on nanowires. © 2010 IOP Publishing Ltd.