Towards a laser fluence dependent nanostructuring of thin Au films on Si by nanosecond laser irradiation

• DOI: 10.1016/j.apsusc.2011.12.087
• Publication Date: 2011-12-26T12:49:20Z
• Authors: F. Ruffino; A. Pugliara; E. Carria; L. Romano; C. Bongiorno; G. Fisicaro; A. La Magna; C. Spinella; M.G. Grimaldi
• Keywords: Nanosecond laser irradiation; Gold; Silicon; NANOPARTICLES; FEMTOSECOND LASER; 02 engineering and technology; GOLD-FILMS; ELECTRON-BEAM; METAL-FILMS; 0210 nano-technology

In this work, we study the nanostructuring effects of nanosecond laser irradiations on 5 nm thick Au film sputter-deposited on Si. After deposition of Au on Si substrate, nanosecond laser irradiations were performed increasing the laser fluence from 750 to 1500 mJ/cm(2). Several analyses techniques, such as Rutherford backscattering spectrometry, scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy were crossed to study the morphological evolution of the Au film as a function of laser fluence. In particular, the formation of Au nanoparticles was observed. The analyses allowed a quantitative evaluation of the evolution of the nanoparticles size, surface density, and shape as a function of the laser fluence. Therefore, a control the structural properties of the Au nanoparticles is reached, for example, for applications in Si nanowires growth or plasmonics.