This paper investigates the buckling behavior of piezoelectric nanowires under distributed transverse loading, within the framework of the Timoshenko beam theory, and in the presence of surface effects. Analytical relations are given for the critical force of axial buckling of nanowires by accounting for the effects of surface elasticity, residual surface tension, and transverse shear deformati...

Single-crystalline, one-dimensional semiconductor nanostructures are considered to be one of the critical building blocks for nanoscale optoelectronics. Elucidation of the vapour-liquid-solid growth mechanism has already enabled precise control over nanowire position and size, yet to date, no reports have demonstrated the ability to choose from different crystallographic growth directions of a ...

The piezo-phototronic effect is about the use of the piezoelectric potential created inside some materials for enhancing the charge carrier generation or separation at the metal-semiconductor contact or pn junction. In this paper, we demonstrate the impact of the piezo-phototronic effect on the photon sensitivity for a ZnO-CdS core-shell micro/nanowire based visible and UV sensor. CdS nanowire ...

Gallium nitride (GaN) wires are used to build up capacitive flexible piezoelectric sensors dedicated to structural health monitoring applications. These slightly cone-shaped nanowires with a hexagonal cross section are grown on sapphire substrate by Metal Organic Vapor Phase Epitaxy (MOVPE); their length (L) can vary from few microns up to hundreds of microns, while the conicity angle (alpha) e...

By assembling a ZnO nanowire (NW) array based nanogenerator (NG) that is transparent to UV light, we have investigated the performance of the NG by tuning its carrier density and the characteristics of the Schottky barrier at the interface between the metal electrode and the NW. The formation of a Schottky diode at the interface is a must for the effective operation of the NG. UV light not only...

Harvesting energy from irregular/random mechanical actions in variable and uncontrollable environments is an effective approach for powering wireless mobile electronics to meet a wide range of applications in our daily life. Piezoelectric nanowires are robust and can be stimulated by tiny physical motions/disturbances over a range of frequencies. Here, we demonstrate the first chemical epitaxia...

Using phosphorus-doped ZnO nanowire (NW) arrays grown on silicon substrate, energy conversion using the p-type ZnO NWs has been demonstrated for the first time. The p-type ZnO NWs produce positive output voltage pulses when scanned by a conductive atomic force microscope (AFM) in contact mode. The output voltage pulse is generated when the tip contacts the stretched side (positive piezoelectric...

I point out the similarity between the microtubule (MT) experiment reported by Priel et al [1] and the ZnO nanowire experiment of Wang et al [4]. It is quite possible that MTs are similar to a piezoelectric field effect transistor (PE-FET) for which the role of the control gate electrode is played by the piezo-induced electric field across the width of the MT walls and their elastic bending fea...

One-dimensional (1D) semiconducting nanostructures, such as nanowires (NWs) and nanobelts (NBs), are fundamental building blocks for constructing nanoscale electronic devices because of their small size and the enhanced charge carrier mobility owing to 1D confinement. Considerable efforts have been devoted to energy-band engineering by doping for controlling their electrical properties and asse...