Controllable lateral growth and electrical properties of nonpolar ZnO nanowires

The iodide interplay with polar Zn2+ and O2- induced nonpolar [10 (1) over bar 10] ZnO nanowires is fabricated via a simple vapor phase transport at a temperature of as low as 250 degrees C that is compatible with the nanodevice processing technique. As-fabricated nanowires exhibit single crystalline hexagonal wurtzite structures and grow along the [10 (1) over bar 10] direction instead of the conventional polar [0001] direction. The growth evolution can be explained by the synergy of the vapor-liquid-solid process and iodide direction-modulation. The electrical measurements demonstrate that the mobility of the PbI2-induced [10 (1) over bar 10] nanowires is significantly improved in comparison with that of the BiI3-modulated [11 (2) over bar0] ones. These unique nonpolar nanowires are promising for improved high efficiency nanodevices.