Conducting nanowires in insulating ceramics

Low-dimensional structures, such as microclusters, quantum dots and one- or two-dimensional (1D or 2D) quantum wires, are of scientific and technological interest due to their unusual physical properties, which are quite different from those in the bulk1,2,3,4. Here we present a successful method for fabricating conducting nanowire bundles inside an insulating ceramic single crystal by using unidirectional dislocations. A high density of dislocations (109 cm−2) was introduced by activating a primary slip system in sapphire (α-Al2O3 single crystal) using a two-stage deformation technique. Plate specimens cut out from the deformed sapphire were then annealed to straighten the dislocations. Finally, the plates on which metallic Ti was evaporated were heat-treated to diffuse Ti atoms inside sapphire. As a result of this process, Ti atoms segregated along the unidirectional dislocations within about 5 nm diameter, forming unidirectional Ti-enriched nanowires, which exhibit excellent electrical conductivity. This simple technique could potentially to be applied to any crystal, and may give special properties to commonly used materials.