Metal–Insulator Transition of Ultrathin Sputtered Metals on Phenolic Resin Thin Films: Growth Morphology and Relations to Surface Free Energy and Reactivity
Nanostructured metal assemblies on thin and ultrathin polymeric films enable state of the art technologies and have further potential in diverse fields. Rational design of the structure–function relationship is of critical importance but aggravated by the scarcity of systematic studies. Here, we stu...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-02-01
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| Series: | Nanomaterials |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/11/3/589 |
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| author | Christian Schuster Harald Rennhofer Heinz Amenitsch Helga C. Lichtenegger Alois Jungbauer Rupert Tscheliessing |
| author_facet | Christian Schuster Harald Rennhofer Heinz Amenitsch Helga C. Lichtenegger Alois Jungbauer Rupert Tscheliessing |
| author_sort | Christian Schuster |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Nanostructured metal assemblies on thin and ultrathin polymeric films enable state of the art technologies and have further potential in diverse fields. Rational design of the structure–function relationship is of critical importance but aggravated by the scarcity of systematic studies. Here, we studied the influence of the interplay between metal and polymer surface free energy and reactivity on the evolution of electric conductivity and the resulting morphologies. In situ resistance measurements during sputter deposition of Ag, Au, Cu and Ni films on ultrathin reticulated polymer films collectively reveal metal–insulator transitions characteristic for Volmer–Weber growth. The different onsets of percolation correlate with interfacial energy and energy of adhesion weakly but as expected from ordinary wetting theory. A more pronounced trend of lower percolation thickness for more reactive metals falls in line with reported correlations. Ex situ grazing incidence small angle X-ray scattering experiments were performed at various thicknesses to gain an insight into cluster and film morphology evolution. A novel approach to interpret the scattering data is used where simulated pair distance distributions of arbitrary shapes and arrangements can be fitted to experiments. Detailed approximations of cluster structures could be inferred and are discussed in view of the established parameters describing film growth behavior. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T00:29:10Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-2f31bb2b8d7844dab3056e630e7e207e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2079-4991 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T00:29:10Z |
| publishDate | 2021-02-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nanomaterials |
| spelling | doaj.art-2f31bb2b8d7844dab3056e630e7e207e2023-12-11T18:37:56ZengMDPI AGNanomaterials2079-49912021-02-0111358910.3390/nano11030589Metal–Insulator Transition of Ultrathin Sputtered Metals on Phenolic Resin Thin Films: Growth Morphology and Relations to Surface Free Energy and ReactivityChristian Schuster0Harald Rennhofer1Heinz Amenitsch2Helga C. Lichtenegger3Alois Jungbauer4Rupert Tscheliessing5Austrian Centre of Industrial Biotechnology, Muthgasse 11, 1190 Vienna, AustriaInstitute of Physics and Materials Science, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Peter-Jordan-Straße 82, 1190 Vienna, AustriaInstitute of Inorganic Chemistry, University of Technology Graz, Stremayrgasse 9, 8010 Graz, AustriaInstitute of Physics and Materials Science, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Peter-Jordan-Straße 82, 1190 Vienna, AustriaAustrian Centre of Industrial Biotechnology, Muthgasse 11, 1190 Vienna, AustriaAustrian Centre of Industrial Biotechnology, Muthgasse 11, 1190 Vienna, AustriaNanostructured metal assemblies on thin and ultrathin polymeric films enable state of the art technologies and have further potential in diverse fields. Rational design of the structure–function relationship is of critical importance but aggravated by the scarcity of systematic studies. Here, we studied the influence of the interplay between metal and polymer surface free energy and reactivity on the evolution of electric conductivity and the resulting morphologies. In situ resistance measurements during sputter deposition of Ag, Au, Cu and Ni films on ultrathin reticulated polymer films collectively reveal metal–insulator transitions characteristic for Volmer–Weber growth. The different onsets of percolation correlate with interfacial energy and energy of adhesion weakly but as expected from ordinary wetting theory. A more pronounced trend of lower percolation thickness for more reactive metals falls in line with reported correlations. Ex situ grazing incidence small angle X-ray scattering experiments were performed at various thicknesses to gain an insight into cluster and film morphology evolution. A novel approach to interpret the scattering data is used where simulated pair distance distributions of arbitrary shapes and arrangements can be fitted to experiments. Detailed approximations of cluster structures could be inferred and are discussed in view of the established parameters describing film growth behavior.https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/11/3/589thin filmspolymer-metal interfacesdepositionmetal clustersin situ resistivitysurface free energy |
| spellingShingle | Christian Schuster Harald Rennhofer Heinz Amenitsch Helga C. Lichtenegger Alois Jungbauer Rupert Tscheliessing Metal–Insulator Transition of Ultrathin Sputtered Metals on Phenolic Resin Thin Films: Growth Morphology and Relations to Surface Free Energy and Reactivity Nanomaterials thin films polymer-metal interfaces deposition metal clusters in situ resistivity surface free energy |
| title | Metal–Insulator Transition of Ultrathin Sputtered Metals on Phenolic Resin Thin Films: Growth Morphology and Relations to Surface Free Energy and Reactivity |
| title_full | Metal–Insulator Transition of Ultrathin Sputtered Metals on Phenolic Resin Thin Films: Growth Morphology and Relations to Surface Free Energy and Reactivity |
| title_fullStr | Metal–Insulator Transition of Ultrathin Sputtered Metals on Phenolic Resin Thin Films: Growth Morphology and Relations to Surface Free Energy and Reactivity |
| title_full_unstemmed | Metal–Insulator Transition of Ultrathin Sputtered Metals on Phenolic Resin Thin Films: Growth Morphology and Relations to Surface Free Energy and Reactivity |
| title_short | Metal–Insulator Transition of Ultrathin Sputtered Metals on Phenolic Resin Thin Films: Growth Morphology and Relations to Surface Free Energy and Reactivity |
| title_sort | metal insulator transition of ultrathin sputtered metals on phenolic resin thin films growth morphology and relations to surface free energy and reactivity |
| topic | thin films polymer-metal interfaces deposition metal clusters in situ resistivity surface free energy |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/11/3/589 |
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