Surface morphology and step fluctuations on Ag nanowires

Silver nanowires fabricated using a wet-chemical synthesis have been characterized in UHV using scanning tunneling microscopy. The nanowires have a faceted structure with a high density of steps at the facet boundaries. Monolayer height steps are easily imaged, and have measurable temporal fluctuations at room temperature. Measurement of the step time correlation functions shows that the steps fluctuate via periphery diffusion, with a hopping time constant of 0.10–0.24 s. The symmetry of islands on the facets and the quantitative step characteristics are both consistent with (1 0 0) oriented facets, in agreement with previous TEM characterization.