Amorphous Silicon Dioxide Nanowire Array Synthesized via Carbonization of Polyimide Thin Film

Amorphous silicon oxide nanowires (SiOxNWs) were produced on a large scale by simple heat treatment of the Au nanoparticle/Polyimide/Si thin film stack at 1000 °C. The SiOxNWs had diameters ranging from 50 to 80 nm with length extending up to 20 m. The SiOxNWs exhibited intense blue light emission at 420 nm. It was proposed that the formation of the SiOxNWs was sustained by the oxygen derived from carbonization of the polyimide thin film, while the Au nanoparticles catalyzed the nanowire growth.