Self-assembled Au nanoparticles on heated Corning glass by dc magnetron sputtering: size-dependent surface plasmon resonance tuning

• Published in: Journal of nanoparticle research : an interdisciplinary forum for nanoscale science and technology 2013-02, Vol.15 (2), p.1-8, Article 1446
• Main Authors: Grammatikopoulos, S., Pappas, S. D., Dracopoulos, V., Poulopoulos, P., Fumagalli, P., Velgakis, M. J., Politis, C.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Characterization and Evaluation of Materials; Chemistry and Materials Science; Condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties; Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science; rheology; Deposition; Deposition by sputtering; Direct current; Exact sciences and technology; Fullerenes and related materials; Glass; Gold; High temperature; Inorganic Chemistry; Lasers; Magnetron sputtering; Materials Science; Methods of deposition of films and coatings; film growth and epitaxy; Methods of nanofabrication; Nanocrystalline materials; Nanoparticles; Nanoscale materials and structures: fabrication and characterization; Nanotechnology; Optical Devices; Optical properties; Optical properties and condensed-matter spectroscopy and other interactions of matter with particles and radiation; Optics; Particle size; Photonics; Physical Chemistry; Physics; Plasmons; Research Paper; Resonance; Self-assembly; Tuning; Visible and ultraviolet spectra
• ISSN: 1388-0764; 1572-896X
• DOI: 10.1007/s11051-013-1446-3

We report on the growth of Au nanoparticles on Corning glass by direct current magnetron sputtering and on the optical absorption of the films. The substrate temperature was kept to relatively high temperatures of 100 or 450 °C. This lead to the growth of Au nanoparticles instead of smooth Au films as the surface energy of Au is much larger than the one of glass. The size of the particles depended on the substrate temperature and deposition time and was shown to follow a logarithmic normal distribution function. Both, the surface plasmon resonance position and bandwidth, were found to depend upon the average particle size. The surface plasmon resonance position showed a 75 nm continuous blue shift from 14 nm down to 2.5 nm average particle size. Thus, we have shown how to tune the nanoparticle size and surface plasmon resonance of Au by varying the substrate temperature and deposition time. The experimental results are reproduced reasonably using a method which is based on the size- and wavelength-dependent complex dielectric function of Au within the framework of the Mie theory for the optical properties of metallic nanospheres.