An effective way to create self-organizing arrays of metal particles is to melt thin layers of substance on a poorly wetted surface. Such arrays may improve the technological properties of functional structures, and are themselves functional elements of modern devices and systems.
During the melting of a solid layer on a poorly wetted substrate, an array of spherical particles is formed, which are evenly distributed over the surface of the substrate. The distribution of particles by size is determined by the thickness of the fusible layer and conditions of the deposition. The location of islands, formed after the melting of vapour-crystal deposited solid films, is determined primarily by the initial stages of de-wetting, when the thin continuous film starts to decay while remaining in solid state.
This work studied self-organizing processes during the melting of Pb films deposited on a Ta substrate. The films were deposited on glass plates in a high vacuum and then after deposition were heated to a temperature slightly above the Pb melting point. After the heat treatment the samples were removed from the vacuum chamber and examined using SEM microscopy and EDS analysis.
It was discovered that arrays of spherical particles are formed during the melting of micron-thick Pb films. The histograms of the size distribution of such particles are quite wide and can be represented as bimodal with partially overlapping maxima. This can be explained by active coalescence processes in thicker samples. This study demonstrated that small temperature gradients can cause noticeable kinetic effects that allow separate particles to move macroscopic distances and capture the surrounding substance. The study also estimated the energy associated with the optimization of the morphological structure of vacuum condensate and which is a physical factor of de-wetting.
