Synthesis of Assembled Nanocrystalline Si Dots Film by the Langmuir–Blodgett Technique

Abstract

We report on a new bottom-up technique for forming silicon nanostructures based on the assembly of nanocrystalline Si (nc-Si) dots by the Langmuir–Blodgett technique. nc-Si dots with a diameter of 10±1 nm fabricated by a very high frequency (VHF) plasma process are dispersed in solvent and functionalized with an appropriate silane coupling agent. After compression at the surface of a Langmuir trough to form a well-organized two-dimensional array, nc-Si dots are transferred onto Si substrates. We have succeeded in forming a well-assembled nc-Si dot array with an area density of 7.33×1011 cm-2. Furthermore, we clarified what happens at the surface of a Langmuir trough based by analyzing surface pressure-area isotherms.