Systematic study on the self-assembled hexagonal Au voids, nano-clusters and nanoparticles on GaN (0001)

Puran Pandey, Mao Sui, Ming Yu Li, Quanzhen Zhang, Eun Soo Kim, Jihoon Lee

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12 Scopus citations

Abstract

Au nano-clusters and nanoparticles (NPs) have been widely utilized in various electronic, optoelectronic, and bio-medical applications due to their great potentials. The size, density and configuration of Au NPs play a vital role in the performance of these devices. In this paper, we present a systematic study on the self-assembled hexagonal Au voids, nanoclusters and NPs fabricated on GaN (0001) by the variation of annealing temperature and deposition amount. At relatively low annealing temperatures between 400 and 600°C, the fabrication of hexagonal shaped Au voids and Au nano-clusters are observed and discussed based on the diffusion limited aggregation model. The size and density of voids and nano-clusters can systematically be controlled. The self-assembled Au NPs are fabricated at comparatively high temperatures from 650 to 800°C based on the Volmer-Weber growth model and also the size and density can be tuned accordingly. The results are symmetrically analyzed and discussed in conjunction with the diffusion theory and thermodynamics by utilizing AFM and SEM images, EDS maps and spectra, FFT power spectra, cross-sectional line-profiles and size and density plots.

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere0134637
JournalPLoS ONE
Volume10
Issue number8
DOIs
StatePublished - 18 Aug 2015

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