Growth process modeling of semiconductor nanowires for scale-up of nanomanufacturing: A review

To keep up with the increasing need for nanomanufacturing (NM), research on the scale-up of NM has become an emerging field of study. This review article first discusses the author understanding on research classification of scale-up NM research, which entails scale-up process research and scale-up methodology research. The scale-up methodology research includes establishing modeling, simulation, and control methodologies that enable and support economic production at commercial scale. Since NM process modeling provides the basis for process monitoring and control, guided inspection and sensing strategy, and more-efficient experimental design strategy for robust synthesis of nanomaterials, semiconductor nanowire growth is used as an example to review different process modeling strategies for scalable NM. The modeling strategies from the existing literature on nanowire growth studies are summarized into four categories: (i) physical modeling; (ii) statistical modeling; (iii) physical-statistical modeling; and (iv) cross-domain modeling and validation. In addition to illustrating modeling approaches in the literature, suitable domains of applications for each modeling strategy are discussed. Two potential areas worthy of efforts in future research are highlighted.