Centre-to-centre distributions of particles in discontinuous metal films

Norrman, S.; Andersson, T. G.

doi:10.1016/0040-6090(80)90584-2

Cited by 8 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…While the optical response of ultrathin, semi-transparent Au island films can be conveniently measured using transmission spectroscopy, a detailed study of the morphology requires high-resolution imaging techniques. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), commonly used for characterization of film structure down to atomic resolution, provides a quantitative description of the 2D projection of the island ensemble, − but involves highly complex sample preparation due to the difficulty in separating the island film from the substrate while leaving the film intact. A better choice is scanning electron microscopy (SEM) imaging, which requires no particular sample preparation and allows imaging of Au island films with a resolution of several nanometers, as demonstrated with silicon 8 and titania substrates.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ultrathin Gold Island Films on Silanized Glass. Morphology and Optical Properties

et al. 2004

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Evaporated gold island films have been the subject of studies dealing with a variety of spectroscopic and sensing applications. Development of these and other applications requires film stability as well as tunability of the morphology and optical properties of the island films. In the present work, ultrathin, island-type gold films were prepared by evaporation of 1.0-15.0 nm (nominal thickness) gold at a rate of 0.005-0.012 nm s -1 onto glass substrates modified with 3-mercaptopropyl trimethoxysilane (MPTS), the latter used to improve the Au adhesion to the glass. The morphology of the films, either unannealed or annealed (20 h at 200 °C), was studied using atomic force microscopy (AFM) and high-resolution scanning electron microscopy (HR-SEM). The information provided by the two imaging techniques is complementary, giving a good estimate of the shape of the islands and its variation with film thickness and annealing. The optical properties of the films were examined using transmission UV-vis spectroscopy, showing a strong dependence of the localized Au surface plasmon (SP) band on the morphology of the island films. The imaging and spectroscopy indicate a gradual transition from isolated islands to a continuous film upon increasing the Au thickness.

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