Lateral growth and shape of semiconductor nanowires

The lateral growth of semiconductor nanowires and its influence on the nanowire shape in the case of nanocrystal formation according to the diffusion mechanism is theoretically studied. Possible types of the dependence of the adatom concentration at the lateral faces of the nanowires on the vertical coordinate are found. A self-consistent model is developed within the linear approximation in the adatom concentration, which makes it possible to describe simultaneously both vertical and lateral nanowire growth. The possible shapes of the nanowires, depending on the growth conditions, are described within this model and compared with the experimental data on different III–V systems.