Fabrication of CdS/Hg(1-x)CdxTe nanowire heterostructures on conductive glass using templated electrodeposition

Single-material and heterojunction nanowires were fabricated from CdS and Hg(1-x)CdxTe (MCT) in anodic aluminum oxide templates grown on transparent conductive oxide coated glass substrates. Structural and compositional analyses were carried out by electron microscopy, elemental analysis and x-ray diffraction. CdS was deposited using potentiostatic electrodepositon, forming CdS nanowires with a 1:1 stoichiometry and wurtzite structure. MCT was also deposited using potentiostatic electrodeposition, forming MCT nanowires with a stoichiometry of Hg0.24Cd0.76Te and a zinc blende structure. Annealing of the electrodeposited MCT nanowires increased crystallite size from similar to 9 nm to similar to 23 nm in the (1 1 1) direction. Heterojunction nanowires were prepared by sequential electrodeposition of CdS and MCT with control over the length and diameter. These materials have a desirable band gap and geometry for multiple-exciton generation studies for nanostructured photovoltaics applications. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.