Field of Sunflowers Amorphous SiOx nanowire bundles have an uncanny ability to self-assemble into various shapes, including one that strikingly resembles a sunflower. In these sunflowers, highly packed bundles form the disc florets and loosely packed ones around the rim of the disc form the ray florets. The scanning electron image shows a field of sunflowers. The grey-scale image was mapped into pseudo-colors by graphic software. The nanowires grew out of the reaction of Si and oxygen, with molten Ga and Au acting as catalysts. Each nanowire is about 10 nm in diameter and tens of micrometers in length. (Image: S.K. Hark, The Chinese University of Hong Kong)
Scientists “grew” the flowers by putting droplets of liquid metal on a silicon chip. By changing the temperature and pressure in the experiment, they can weave the wires into three-dimensional shapes such as flowers.
Spectacular flower-like nanostructures can detect alcohol and might also be useful as catalysts.
The "nanoflowers" were made from zinc oxide by Yujin Chen and colleagues at Harbin Engineering University. Conventional sensors look set to be replaced by a new generation of detectors. "Zinc oxide sensors need to be heated to temperatures of up to300°C before they become sensitive to ethanol.
The image shows fibres after treatment with ultrasounds of a bismuth cluster (2 nm high). It is interesting to observe the singular arrangement of the fibres on the surface at the first moments after deposition. (Mrs Lorena Welte Hidalgo, Universidad Autonoma de Madrid/Spain)
Field of Sunflowers
Amorphous SiOx nanowire bundles have an uncanny ability to self-assemble into various shapes, including one that strikingly resembles a sunflower. In these sunflowers, highly packed bundles form the disc florets and loosely packed ones around the rim of the disc form the ray florets. The scanning electron image shows a field of sunflowers. The grey-scale image was mapped into pseudo-colors by graphic software. The nanowires grew out of the reaction of Si and oxygen, with molten Ga and Au acting as catalysts. Each nanowire is about 10 nm in diameter and tens of micrometers in length. (Image: S.K. Hark, The Chinese University of Hong Kong)
Nano flower bouquet
Tiny wires of silicon and carbon.
image: Mark Welland and Ghim Wei Ho
They weave the wires of silicon and carbon into flower-like shapes
image: Mark Welland and Ghim Wei Ho
Nanoflowers blossom in place of nanotubes
Scientists “grew” the flowers by putting droplets of liquid metal on a silicon chip. By changing the temperature and pressure in the experiment, they can weave the wires into three-dimensional shapes such as flowers.
Spectacular flower-like nanostructures can detect alcohol and might also be useful as catalysts.
The "nanoflowers" were made from zinc oxide by Yujin Chen and colleagues at Harbin Engineering University. Conventional sensors look set to be replaced by a new generation of detectors. "Zinc oxide sensors need to be heated to temperatures of up to300°C before they become sensitive to ethanol.
Nano Clover
The image shows fibres after treatment with ultrasounds of a bismuth cluster (2 nm high). It is interesting to observe the singular arrangement of the fibres on the surface at the first moments after deposition. (Mrs Lorena Welte Hidalgo, Universidad Autonoma de Madrid/Spain)
Padurea quantica
GeSi quantum dots on Si, average diameter approx. 70 nm, typical height approx. 15 nm. (Mr Thorsten Dziomba. Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt, Germany)