Speaker
Description
Metallic nanopatterns exhibit unique electrical and optical properties, making them highly attractive for applications in nanoelectronics, nanophotonics, and sensing technologies.
However, conventional fabrication techniques often face trade-offs between resolution, throughput, and cost-effectiveness, motivating alternative approaches [1]. Here, we present a versatile, resist-free method for fabricating silver micro- and nanostructures via direct decomposition of spin-coated silver butyrate films by Focused Ion Beam (FIB) irradiation. The process combines (i) spin coating, (ii) focused Ga⁺ irradiation, and (iii) development by removing non-irradiated material. By tuning precursor composition and irradiation conditions, we achieve precise control over the microstructure, from continuous Ag-enriched platelets to nanoparticle assemblies. This enables dual functionality: continuous structures show metallic behaviour with resistivity as low as 90 μΩ·cm, while nanoparticle-based morphologies act as efficient Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) substrates, with enhancement factors comparable to state-of-the-art commercial silver substrates.
Overall, this approach provides a simple and flexible route to engineer silver nanostructures with tailored electrical and plasmonic properties, opening opportunities in nanoelectronic interconnects and SERS-based sensing.
References
[1] Alongkorn Pimpin et al. Engineering journal. 2012, 16, pp. 37–56.