Nanosprings have been object of intense investigations in recent years. They can be classified as normal or binormal depending on the geometry of their cross-section. Normal amorphous nanosprings have not been observed experimentally up to now, and only recently the synthesis of a crystalline ZnO normal nanohelix has been reported. We discuss the shape of the catalyst in terms of the cross-sectional shape of the nanospring, and show that, within the vapor-liquid-solid model, the growth of amorphous normal nanospring is not energetically favoured.
Cite
@article{arxiv.cond-mat/0507400,
title = {Is it possible to grow amorphous normal nanosprings ?},
author = {Alexandre F. Fonseca and C. P. Malta and D. S. Galvao},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:cond-mat/0507400},
year = {2011}
}