Direct ion-beam deposition of Ag nanoparticles using a solid-state silver ion source

Abstract

Ion beam technology has shown itself worth to be an efficient method to produce nanoparticles embedded in dielectrics for photoelectronic devices. However, direct ion-beam deposition of nanoparticles (NPs) on the surface of dielectrics is rarely reported because the conventional metal ion source runs into difficulties to generate low energy (<10 keV) ion-beams. Herein, Ag NPs are directly deposited on the surface of Si substrates using the recently developed solid electrolyte ion source (SEIS), which possesses advantages of compactness, simple working conditions, and ability of emitting ion-beam at an energy of few keV. The composition, morphology and size of the synthesized Ag NPs are studied. Precise control of the NPs size including in-plane diameter and height is achieved by a modulation of the ion implantation dose. Localized maskless deposition of metal films on semiconductor surface is also expected using the SEIS device.