Abstract
In this study, we used a 30 keV argon cluster ion beam bombardment to investigate the dynamic processes during nano-ripple formation on gold surfaces. Atomic force microscope analysis shows that the gold surface has maximum roughness at an incident angle of 60° from the surface normal; moreover, at this angle, and for an applied fluence of 3 × 1016 clusters/cm2, the aspect ratio of the nano-ripple pattern is in the range of ~50%. Rutherford backscattering spectrometry analysis reveals a formation of a surface gradient due to prolonged gas cluster ion bombardment, although the surface roughness remains consistent throughout the bombarded surface area. As a result, significant mass redistribution is triggered by gas cluster ion beam bombardment at room temperature. Where mass redistribution is responsible for nano-ripple formation, the surface erosion process refines the formed nano-ripple structures.
Highlights
The fabrication of metal nano-scale structures on surfaces has generated great interest in surface, optical, and biomedical engineering applications: for example, surface wetting, nano-tribology, surface plasmon resonance-based applications, such as surface-enhanced Raman scattering, catalytic surfaces, and bio-sensors, and optical waveguides
We investigate the formation and the correlation of surface erosion and mass redistribution to the gas cluster ion beam (GCIB) bombardment-induced self-assembly of nanostructures on gold surfaces with different incident angles and applied fluences under room temperature conditions
We have given a description of off-normal GCIB bombardment-induced nano-ripple evolution on gold surfaces
Summary
The fabrication of metal nano-scale structures on surfaces has generated great interest in surface, optical, and biomedical engineering applications: for example, surface wetting, nano-tribology, surface plasmon resonance-based applications, such as surface-enhanced Raman scattering, catalytic surfaces, and bio-sensors, and optical waveguides. The fabrication of nanostructures with homogeneous spread with controlled dimensions is always a challenge Chemical techniques such as sol-gel [1] and electrochemical deposition methods [2] are extensively used to fabricate metal nanostructures, but the presence of chemical contaminants is a concern even with selective chemical solutions. Techniques, such as laser ablation deposition, sputtering deposition, and thermal evaporation, reduce the contamination; nanostructures are non-uniform without proper lithographic or physical masking [3,4,5,6,7]. A lack of high resolution microscopic characterization techniques slowed the nano-scale surface studies until recently
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