Blending of nanoscale and microscale in uniform large-area sculptured thin-film architectures

The combination of large thickness (>3 μm), large-area uniformity (75 mm diameter), and high growth rate (up to 0.4 μm min^-1) in assemblies of complex-shaped nanowires on lithographically defined patterns has been achieved for the first time. The nanoscale and the microscale have thus been blended together in sculptured thin films with transverse architectures. SiO_x (x ≈ 2) nanowires were grown by electron-beam evaporation onto silicon substrates both with and without photoresist lines (ID arrays) and checkerboard (2D arrays) patterns. Atomic self-shadowing due to oblique-angle deposition enables the nanowires to grow continuously, to change direction abruptly, and to maintain a constant cross-sectional diameter. The selective growth of nanowire assemblies on the top surfaces of both 1D and 2D arrays can be understood and predicted using simple geometrical shadowing equations.