Electrochemically assembled silver nanowire arrays and its structural characterization

Abstract

Aluminum specimens were first anodized in a sulfuric acid bath to prepare the porous aluminum anodic oxide template, and then silver was electrodeposited into pores of the anodized aluminum by using alternating current (AC). The morphology of the silver in pores of anodized aluminum was characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and the micrographs exhibited that silver was assembled in the form of nanowires with a diameter of ac 25 nm. and length up m 5 μm. The nanowires have a structure of parallel bright stripes alternating with parallel dark stripes(see Fig. 2 (e)). Silver nanowires are parallel to each other in the pores of the porous aluminum anodic oxide template. Selected area electron diffraction (SAED) pattern revealved that silver nanowire is of polycrystalline structure. Additionally, the formation mechanism of the structure of parallel bright stripes alternating with parallel dark stripes was discussed.