In Operando X-Ray Nanodiffraction Reveals Electrically Induced Bending and Lattice Contraction in a Single Nanowire Device.

Hard X-ray diffraction (XRD) using a nanofocused beam is used to measure both lattice contraction and bending in a single nanowire device under electric bias. The shape of the nanowire is reconstructed in 3D with sub-nanometer precision. As the bias voltage is gradually increased, nonreversible structural changes in the contact regions are observed, correlated with degradation of the electrical conductance.