Published online by Cambridge University Press: 21 March 2011
Te-doped Bi nanowires with a 40 nm wire diameter have been successfully synthesized in anodic alumina templates by the pressure injection technique. Due to the unique semimetal-semiconductor transition that occurs in Bi nanowires, these systems exhibit a rather different temperature dependence in transport properties from their bulk counterparts. An improved theoretical model of this unique 1D nanowire system is developed based on the band structure of bulk bismuth. The temperature dependence of resistance for Bi nanowire arrays have been studied experimentally for various Te dopant concentrations and the results are compared with theoretical predictions.