Preparation and optical properties of amorphous SiO nanowires

Abstract

SiO nanowires have been synthesized on SiC substrates with liquid phase Fe as a novel catalyst at 1300-1400°C. The length of SiO nanowires is in the range of several tens to hundreds of micrometers, and the diameters are 40-230 nm. Energy dispersive X-ray analysis shows the element ratio Si:O nanowires as 1:1. However, X-ray-diffraction reveals amorphous structure in SiO nanowires. The formation process of SiO nanowires is related to the solid-liquid-solid growth mechanism. FTIR spectra of SiO nanowires demonstrate two peaks at 1066 and 800 nm, which are different from those of SiO2 nanowires. Meanwhile, Raman spectrum also shows that the characteristic SiO nanowires (321 and 378 nm) is different from the traditional SiO2 nanowires. Photoluminescence spectrum of SiO nanowires shows strong absorption peaks at 421 and 520 nm. All results indicate SiO nanowires having potential application in the optical field.