Helical growth of aluminum nitride: new insights into its growth habit from nanostructures to single crystals.

ABSTRACT: By understanding the growth mechanism of nanomaterials, the morphological features of nanostructures can be rationally controlled, thereby achieving the desired physical properties for specific applications. Herein, the growth habits of aluminum nitride (AlN) nanostructures and single crystals synthesized by an ultrahigh-temperature, catalyst-free, physical vapor transport process were investigated by transmission electron microscopy. The detailed structural characterizations strongly suggested that the growth of AlN nanostructures including AlN nanowires and nanohelixes follow a sequential and periodic rotation in the growth direction, which is independent of the size and shape of the material. Based on these experimental observations, an helical growth mechanism that may originate from t

SUBMITTER: Zhang XH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4432374 | biostudies-literature | 2015 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature