Key features of the phase size effect in a metal–silicon disperse system during nanowhisker growth

We demonstrate that Si nanowhiskers with the participation of Au and Sn nanoparticles form at substrate temperatures of 623 and 498 K, which is below the eutectic temperature in the binary systems Au–Si and Sn–Si. With a decrease in the characteristic size (an increase in the dispersity) of liquid catalyst particles, the phase equilibrium lines in the M–Si phase diagrams shift to lower limiting solute concentrations. The eutectic temperature in the Au–Si system decreases with an increase in the dispersity of the catalyst particles.