Yi-Seul Park

Axon-First Neuritogenesis on Vertical Nanowires

In this work, we report that high-density, vertically grown silicon nanowires (vg-SiNWs) direct a new in vitro developmental pathway of primary hippocampal neurons. Neurons on vg-SiNWs formed a single, extremely elongated major neurite earlier than minor neurites, which led to accelerated polarization. Additionally, the development of lamellipodia, which generally occurs on 2D culture coverslips, was absent on vg-SiNWs. The results indicate that surface topography is an important factor that influences neuronal development and also provide implications for the role of topography in neuronal development in vivo.

Intramolecular and Intermolecular Interactions in Hybrid Organic–Inorganic Alucone Films Grown by Molecular Layer Deposition

Investigation of molecular interactions in polymeric films is crucial for understanding and engineering multiscale physical phenomena correlated to device function and performance, but this often involves a compromise between theoretical and experimental data, because of poor film uniformity. Here, we report the intramolecular and intermolecular interactions inside the ultrathin and conformal hybrid organic-inorganic alucone films grown by molecular layer deposition, based on sequential and self-limiting surface reactions. Varying the carbon chain length of organic precursors, which affects their molecular flexibility, caused intramolecular interactions such as double reactions by bending of the molecular backbone, resulting in formation of hole vacancies in the films. Furthermore, intermolecular interactions in alucone polymeric films are dependent on the thermal kinetics of molecules, leading to binding failures and cross-linking at low and high growth temperatures, respectively. We illustrate these key interactions and identify molecular geometries and potential energies by density functional theory calculations.

Fine-Tunable Absorption of Uniformly Aligned Polyurea Thin Films for Optical Filters Using Sequentially Self-Limited Molecular Layer Deposition

Development of methods enabling the preparation of uniformly aligned polymer thin films at the molecular level is a prerequisite for realizing their optoelectronic characteristics as innovative materials; however, these methods often involve a compromise between scalability and accuracy. In this study, we have grown uniformly aligned polyurea thin films on a SiO2 substrate using molecular layer deposition (MLD) based on sequential and self-limiting surface reactions. By integrating plane-polarized Fourier-transform infrared, Raman spectroscopic tools, and density functional theory calculations, we demonstrated the uniform alignment of polyurea MLD films. Furthermore, the selective-wavelength absorption characteristics of thickness-controlled MLD films were investigated by integrating optical measurements and finite-difference time-domain simulations of reflection spectra, resulting from their thickness-dependent fine resonance with photons, which could be used as color filters in optoelectronics.

Annealed Au-Assisted Epitaxial Growth of Si Nanowires: Control of Alignment and Density

The epitaxial growth of 1D nanostructures is of particular interest for future nanoelectronic devices such as vertical field-effect transistors because it directly influences transistor densities and 3D logic or memory architectures. Silicon nanowires (SiNWs) are a particularly important 1D nanomaterial because they possess excellent electronic and optical properties. What is more, the scalable fabrication of vertically aligned SiNW arrays presents an opportunity for improved device applications if suitable properties can be achieved through controlling the alignment and density of SiNWs, yet this is something that has not been reported in the case of SiNWs synthesized from Au films. This work therefore explores the controllable synthesis of vertically aligned SiNWs through the introduction of an annealing process prior to growth via a Au-catalyzed vapor-liquid-solid mechanism. The epitaxial growth of SiNWs was demonstrated to be achievable using SiCl4 as the Si precursor in chemical vapor deposition, whereas the alignment and density of the SiNWs could be controlled by manipulating the annealing time during the formation of Au nanoparticles (AuNPs) from Au films. During the annealing process, gold silicide was observed to form on the interface of the liquid-phase AuNPs, depending on the size of the AuNPs and the annealing time. This work therefore makes a valuable contribution to improving nanowire-based engineering by controlling its alignment and density as well as providing greater insight into the epitaxial growth of 1D nanostructures.

Synthesis of single-crystalline topological insulator Bi2Se3 nanomaterials with various morphologies

We report the synthesis and characterization of layer-structure Bi2Se3 nanomaterials. Bi2Se3 nanomaterial has attracted many researchers, because it has a unique three-dimensional topological insulator property characterized by a metallic surface which coexists with an insulating interior. This can be achieved by having large surface-to-volume ratio in the nanomaterial. We synthesized highly single-crystalline topological insulator Bi2Se3 nanomaterials with various morphologies, including straight nanowires, zig-zag nanowires, and nanobelts, by adjusting experimental parameters such as the growth temperature, pressure, and carrier gas flow rate. The results show that the width and length of Bi2Se3 nanowires increase significantly with increasing values of each parameter. Furthermore, we studied the growth mechanism of individual morphologies based on the layered structure of Bi2Se3.

Local liquid phase deposition of silicon dioxide on hexagonally close-packed silica beads.

Liquid phase deposition (LPD) is a useful method for the production of oxide film with low reaction temperature and production cost. With the report that the LPD of oxide films is conformally processed with uniform thickness and composition, there has been significant attention given to investigating its kinetic controls and growth mechanism on the flat surface. In this work, we explored the LPD of silicon dioxide on the hexagonally close-packed silica beads array as a nanostructured surface. The deposition and etching reactions of SiO2 occurred locally and simultaneously on silica beads, and were distinguished from the amount of fumed silica added in LPD solution. From locally competitive reactions, we obtained the anisotropic morphology of close-packed silica beads, and proposed a mechanism for the local LPD of SiO2 driven by nanostructured surfaces. This work contributes highly to improve metal oxide-based engineering, and also provide greater insight into the topography-driven LPD.

Location-Controlled Growth of Vertically Aligned Si Nanowires using Au Nanodisks Patterned by KrF Stepper Lithography

The location-controlled epitaxial growth of vertically aligned Si nanowire (v-SiNW) arrays over large surface area was investigated with Au nanodisks (AuNDs) patterned by KrF stepper lithography. There are two steps for synthesizing v-SiNWs from an AuND pattern: annealing and growth. The annealing process induces the formation of a single Au nanoparticle (AuNP) from an AuND pattern, which consists of several cracked AuNPs. Here, the oxide layer between the AuNDs and Si substrate is necessary for impeding the diffusion of Si atoms into the AuNPs. However, the oxide layer must be removed for properly aligned epitaxial SiNW growth. These SiNW arrays in large area can contribute highly to improve a nanowire-based engineering by controlling the location of SiNWs with consistent pitch.

Size-Dependent Surface Migration of Au Alloys on Si Nanowires at Different Cooling Rates.

Understanding metal alloy migration in metal-catalyzed nanowires growth is a prerequisite for improving its potential applications in the field of nanodevices. Here, we explored the surface migration of Au alloys in vertically aligned Si nanowires with different cooling rates. We varied the diameter of Au alloys by controlling the thickness of Au film as a catalyst for SiNW growth, and found that the behavior of Au alloys migration is dependent on size of Au alloys. In addition, the size-dependent migration mechanism of Au alloys was investigated at different cooling rates, which is related to different Au-Si eutectics.

Synthesis of Single-Crystalline InSb Nanowires Using CVD Method and Study of Growth Mechanism in Open and Close System

Single-crystalline InSb nanowire was synthesized on wafer via vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) mechanism using chemical vapor deposition method. According to the source container system (open or close) which contain InSb powder and wafer, the single-crystalline InSb nanowires have different growth mechanisms. Structural characterization of the InSb nanowires was examined by scanning electron microscope (SEM). Composition of the nanowires was investigated using x-ray diffraction (XRD) and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS). This study demonstrates that length and diameter of the InSb nanowires are long and thick using open-boat system by VLS and additional vapor-solid (VS) mechanisms, because open-boat system can carry a large amount of vapor-phase InSb precursor than close-boat system.