Synthesis and optical study of crystalline GaP nanoflowers

GaP nanoflowers composed of numerous GaP nanowires are synthesized through heating InP and Ga2O3 powders. Crystalline GaP nanowires growing from Ga-rich particles have a cubic structure, uniform diameters of ~300 nm, and lengths from several to tens of micrometers. Typically, an individual GaP nanowire displays a hexagonal prism-like morphology with 〈111〉 as the preferential growth direction. Cathodoluminescence measurements show that GaP nanoflowers and GaP nanowires emit at ~600 and ~750 nm, respectively. Additional low-intensity emission peaks are observed for GaP nanoflowers at ~450 nm.