Issue 45, 2021

Surface-directed ZnGa2O4 and β-Ga2O3 nanofins coated with a non-polar GaN shell based on the Kirkendall effect

Abstract

We present a novel approach for growth of surface-directed spinel ZnGa2O4 and β-Ga2O3 nanofins coated with a non-polar GaN shell. Our results show that the use of a binary compound such as core–shell nanostructures as a starting material is not necessary to promote the Kirkendall effect. Our starting materials include ZnO fins and gaseous Ga atoms under nitrogen plasma. The surface-directed ZnO fins provide a spatial confinement to the Kirkendall effect by which the Zn is exchanged with Ga via a vacancy-assisted mechanism. The results show that at a higher Ga concentration, the wurtzite ZnO fin is converted to a ZnGa2O4 cubic spinel, while a lower Ga concentration leads to monoclinic Ga2O3 fins. The fin transformation is followed by GaN shell overgrowth on the fin side walls with a non-polar surface. Within the newly formed fins, we observe uniform Kirkendall nanochannels that are laterally formed between their side walls. This method offers the opportunity of growing heterojunctions of a broad range of wide bandgap spinel materials with GaN. The predictability over surface registries of the core/shell fins and their tunable porosity are anticipated to be of significance in a wide range of applications in chemical- and electro-optical based sensing as well as high power electronics.

Graphical abstract: Surface-directed ZnGa2O4 and β-Ga2O3 nanofins coated with a non-polar GaN shell based on the Kirkendall effect

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
04 Jūn. 2021
Accepted
11 Jūl. 2021
First published
14 Jūl. 2021

CrystEngComm, 2021,23, 7955-7962

Surface-directed ZnGa2O4 and β-Ga2O3 nanofins coated with a non-polar GaN shell based on the Kirkendall effect

B. Nikoobakht, A. C. Johnston-Peck, D. Laleyan, P. Wang and Z. Mi, CrystEngComm, 2021, 23, 7955 DOI: 10.1039/D1CE00744K

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