Controlled physical properties and growth mechanism of manganese silicide nanorods

Abstract

In this study, manganese silicide (Mn5Si3) nanorods grown on c-Si/SiO2 substrate by chemical vapor deposition were investigated in detail, where the reaction temperature was varied from 750 to 1, 000 °C. The Mn5Si3 nanorods were successfully grown at reaction temperatures above 750 °C. The growth of these Mn5Si3 nanorods was followed by a direct vapor transport process, which strongly dependent on the vapor pressure of the Mn precursor. Manganese silicide particles were used as the templates to initiate the growth of these nanorods. The results showed that increasing the reaction temperature increased the delivery of Mn vapor to the substrate surface. The magnetic properties of the Mn5Si3 nanorods were also investigated. The properties of the nanorods were influenced by the formation of Mn-rich silicide phase at higher reaction temperatures. The magnetic result indicated that the nanorods were mainly in ferromagnetic characteristic. The saturation magnetization values at 4 and 300 K were found to be higher at a reaction temperature of 950 °C, with a value of 0.70 and 0.03 emu/g, respectively. The maximum coercivity was obtained for the nanorods prepared at reaction temperature of 950 °C, with a value of 100 Oe.