jz400092m_si_001.pdf (619.95 kB)
Nanoherding: Plasma-Chemical Synthesis and Electric-Charge-Driven Self Organization of SiO2 Nanodots
journal contribution
posted on 2015-12-16, 22:28 authored by I. Levchenko, U. Cvelbar, M. Modic, G. Filipič, X. X. Zhong, M. Mozetič, K. OstrikovWe report on the chemical synthesis of the arrays of
silicon oxide
nanodots and their self-organization on the surface via physical processes
triggered by surface charges. The method based on chemically active
oxygen plasma leads to the rearrangement of nanostructures and eventually
to the formation of groups of nanodots. This behavior is explained
in terms of the effect of electric field on the kinetics of surface
processes. The direct measurements of the electric charges on the
surface demonstrate that the charge correlates with the density and
arrangement of nanodots within the array. Extensive numerical simulations
support the proposed mechanism and prove a critical role of the electric
charges in the self-organization. This simple and environment-friendly
self-guided process could be used in the chemical synthesis of large
arrays of nanodots on semiconducting surfaces for a variety of applications
in catalysis, energy conversion and storage, photochemistry, environmental
and biosensing, and several others.