View in EDS

In situ manipulation of electron beam irradiation-activated nanoscale tips formation from amorphous and metal modified silica nanowires.

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Title: In situ manipulation of electron beam irradiation-activated nanoscale tips formation from amorphous and metal modified silica nanowires.
Authors: Khan, Imran, Żak, Andrzej M., Gilani, S. M. Sohail, Lan, Jinshen, Huang, Shengli
Source: Applied Nanoscience; Aug2025, Vol. 15 Issue 4, p1-18, 18p
Abstract: Escalating use of amorphous silica nanowires (a-SiOx NWs) in potential applications demonstrates the demand of novel processing techniques at nanoscale. Due to the imperfect structure and porous morphology, a-SiOx NWs can be metal-modified which allows for electrical conduction under visible light. Unfortunately, their brittle nature at room temperature and nanometric-size make it demanding to precisely process and change shape from an elongated fiber to a sharply pointed tip. Here energetic electron beam (e-beam) irradiation of a-SiOx and a-SiOx NWs with gold-nanoparticles (Au-NPs) (Au–SiOx NWs) is performed to develop diverse shaped nanoscale tips by optimizing e-beam parameters. Sharp amorphous tips (6 and 11 nm), extremely sharp Au-tips (4 and 6 nm), and relatively thick (16 and 18 nm) amorphous tips with average lengths of 50, 30, and 20 nm are formed at the centers of a-SiOx and Au–SiOx NWs when a tightly focused e-beam with beam spot size (~ 42 nm) equal to the diameters of NWs is centered at their axes and edge positions respectively. Au-tips thickening (4 or 6 to 22 nm) with reduction (20–16 nm) in length is observed when a uniform e-beam with beam spot size ~ 200 nm is employed. In-situ electron microscopy evaluation demonstrates that during e-beam processing, evaporation, diffusion, plastic flow, and dewetting are driven by positive curvature and e-beam activation effect. The combination of beam spot size and position can be used to tailor atomically sharp tips for wide applications, such as interconnects, biochemical sensing, scanning near-field optical microscopes, blue light emitters, and manipulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Applied Nanoscience is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Complementary Index
Description
Abstract:Escalating use of amorphous silica nanowires (a-SiO<subscript>x</subscript> NWs) in potential applications demonstrates the demand of novel processing techniques at nanoscale. Due to the imperfect structure and porous morphology, a-SiO<subscript>x</subscript> NWs can be metal-modified which allows for electrical conduction under visible light. Unfortunately, their brittle nature at room temperature and nanometric-size make it demanding to precisely process and change shape from an elongated fiber to a sharply pointed tip. Here energetic electron beam (e-beam) irradiation of a-SiO<subscript>x</subscript> and a-SiO<subscript>x</subscript> NWs with gold-nanoparticles (Au-NPs) (Au–SiO<subscript>x</subscript> NWs) is performed to develop diverse shaped nanoscale tips by optimizing e-beam parameters. Sharp amorphous tips (6 and 11 nm), extremely sharp Au-tips (4 and 6 nm), and relatively thick (16 and 18 nm) amorphous tips with average lengths of 50, 30, and 20 nm are formed at the centers of a-SiO<subscript>x</subscript> and Au–SiO<subscript>x</subscript> NWs when a tightly focused e-beam with beam spot size (~ 42 nm) equal to the diameters of NWs is centered at their axes and edge positions respectively. Au-tips thickening (4 or 6 to 22 nm) with reduction (20–16 nm) in length is observed when a uniform e-beam with beam spot size ~ 200 nm is employed. In-situ electron microscopy evaluation demonstrates that during e-beam processing, evaporation, diffusion, plastic flow, and dewetting are driven by positive curvature and e-beam activation effect. The combination of beam spot size and position can be used to tailor atomically sharp tips for wide applications, such as interconnects, biochemical sensing, scanning near-field optical microscopes, blue light emitters, and manipulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
ISSN:21905509
DOI:10.1007/s13204-025-03110-0