Preface

The field of semiconductor nanowires has become one of the most active research areas within the nanoscience community. This E-Book on “Advances in III-V Semiconductor Nanowires and Nanodevices” presents the latest knowledge in the highly topical research field of semiconductor nanowires. Semiconductor nanowires exhibit novel electronic and optical properties due to their unique one-dimensional structure and quantum confinement effects. In particular, III-V semiconductor nanowires have been of great scientific and technological interest for next generation optoelectronic devices including transistors, light emitting diodes, lasers, photodetectors, and solar cells. To fully exploit these properties and devices, current research has focused on rational synthetic control of these one-dimensional nanoscale building blocks, novel properties characterization, and device fabrication/integration. This special E-book is an account of recent progress in the synthesis, characterization, physical properties, device fabrication, and applications of binary compound and ternary alloy III-V semiconductor nanowires. The book begins with a description of general synthetic strategies, followed by a focus chapter on each of the major binary III-V material systems, a single chapter on the lesser studied but important ternary III-V material systems, and ends with three chapters on major application areas. Each chapter is prepared by renowned experts in the field, describing the current state of knowledge and key areas of research. The book is written at the expert level, although it may also serve as a guide for other researchers or graduate students wishing to enter the field.