Crystalline boron nanowires were grown on Pt coated sapphire substrates using pulsed laser ablation at different temperatures under a pressure of 50 Pa. High-resolution TEM and transmission electron diffraction (TED) analyses were performed to determine the crystal structure of these nanowires. These nanowires had diameters ~100 nm and lengths in the micrometer range. Systematic analyses showed that a vapour-liquid-solid (VLS) mechanism plays an important role in the growth of boron nanowires. The role of the Pt catalyst in the synthesis of boron nanowires is also discussed.

Keywords: Boron, Nanowire, Pulsed Laser ablation, HR-TEM, VLS growth.