Oxide nanoparticle thin films created using molecular templates

Gardener, J.A., Liaw, I., Aeppli, G., Boyd, I.W., Fiddy, S., Hyett, G., Jones, T.S., Lauzurica, S., Palgrave, R.G., Parkin, I.P., Sankar, G., Sikora, M., Stoneham, A.M., Thornton, G. and Heutz, S. (2011) Oxide nanoparticle thin films created using molecular templates. The Journal of Physical Chemistry C, 115 (27), 13151-13157. (doi:10.1021/jp200567r).

Abstract

We present a new generic method to synthesize nanostructured metal(II) oxide films on a substrate such as silicon. Vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) excimer lamps rupture metal organic precursors, creating volatile organic fragments, while the metal species at the surface form oxides. X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS) and X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) confirm that 172 nm VUV irradiation of manganese and copper phthalocyanines yields manganese(II) and copper(II) oxides, respectively. The morphology of the precursor film provides a template from which metal oxide nanoparticles are formed, which we demonstrate for particles with dimensions 40 x 40 x 10 nm(3). Our procedure is both simple and flexible, with low thermal budget and potential for patterning.

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Contributors

Author: G. Hyett

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