Synthesis of 3C-SiC nanowires from a graphene/Si configuration obtained by arc discharge method

Abstract

SiC nanowires were fabricated by heat-treating a graphene/Si configuration without using catalyst. This configuration was obtained by depositing few-layer graphene powders on Si (111) wafer using arc discharge method. The coverage rate of graphene on Si substrate can be controlled by arc discharge duration. The micro morphology observation and spectra characterization indicate that few-layer graphene powders provide carbon source in both nucleation step and growing step through vapor-solid process. The present results show that few-layer graphene can be used to mass-produce 3C-SiC nanowires with diameters from 10 to 50nm, which is useful for applications of nanodevices and composite materials.