Morphology of periodic nanostructures for photonic crystals grown by glancing angle deposition

An enhancement of the glancing angle deposition (GLAD) technique called PhiSweep was used to grow slanted columns of silicon and titanium dioxide onto patterned substrates. The PhiSweep technique involves periodically rotating the substrate back and forth during the deposition process, which reduces column fanning caused by anisotropy in the shadowing conditions. The patterned substrates consisted of a tetragonal array of hillocks with 100, 200, and 300 nm periodicities and were fabricated using electron beam lithography. The PhiSweep method alters the tilt angle of the slanted columns compared with those grown using traditional GLAD. We present a derivation of the tilt angle of the slanted columns as a function of the parameters of the PhiSweep technique. The tilt angles of the silicon and titanium dioxide films were measured and agree with the predicted values. The films fabricated using the PhiSweep method are compared with similar films grown using traditional GLAD. The PhiSweep technique produced films with substantially less column fanning than those grown by traditional GLAD. This reduction in column fanning has extended the size range over which periodic GLAD structures, such as square spiral photonic crystals, can be grown.     

Gold coated metal nanostructures grown by glancing angle deposition and pulsed electroplating

Nickel based nanostructures are grown by glancing angle deposition (GLAD) on flat and pre-patterned substrates. These fabricated porous thin films were subsequently coated by pulsed electroplating with gold. The morphology and conformity of the gold coating were investigated by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. Controlled growth of closed gold layers on the nanostructures could be achieved, while the open-pore structure of the nanosculptured thin films was preserved. Such gold coated nanostructures are a candidate for optical sensing and catalysis applications. The demonstrated method can be applied for numerous material combinations, allowing to provide GLAD thin films with new surface properties.     

Structure and optical properties of ZnS thin films grown by glancing angle deposition

The glancing angle deposition (GLAD) technique was used to deposit ZnS films by electron beam evaporation method. The cross sectional scanning electron microscopy (SEM) image illustrated a highly orientated microstructure composed of slanted column. The atomic force microscopy (AFM) analysis indicated that incident flux angle had significant effects on the nodule size and surface roughness. Under identical nominal thickness, the actual thickness of the GLAD films is related to the incident flux angle. The refractive index and in-plane birefringence of the GLAD ZnS films were discussed, and the maximum birefringence Δn = 0.036 was obtained at incident flux angle of α = 80°. Therefore, the glancing angle deposition technique is a promising way to create a columnar structure with enhanced birefringent property.     

ZrO2 films with variable refractive index by glancing angle deposition

When optical film is deposited at oblique angle incidences, the film becomes porously, and the film effective refractive index will decrease. Six porous ZrO2 films are fabricated by the glancing angle deposition (GLAD) technique with the different incidence angles. By changing the substrate tilt angle from 0° to 85°, the film refractive index varies from 1.92 to 1.27.     

Characterization of CoPt nanowire fabricated by glancing angle deposition

CoPt and Co nanowire films were deposited by the Glancing Angle Deposition(GLAD) method. All samples are deposited on Si substrates that were covered by polystyrene spheres to assist the alignment of nanowires. SEM observation results show that the length and diameter of nanowires are uniform for all samples. According to the result of XRD, the crystal structure of CoPt is fcc. The angular dependence of magnetization of the nanowires shows that the easy axis of magnetization is along the growth direction of the nanowires.     

Porosity engineering in glancing angle deposition thin films

We present a new technique for the fabrication of thin films at highly oblique flux incidence angles, in which the direction of film growth and the direction of incoming deposition flux are decoupled. The technique offers a high level of control over the porosity of thin films, and has been used to make thin films with a uniform and highly porous microstructure of tightly interwoven nanoscale fibres. The nanofibrous films have been analysed using scanning and transmission electron microscopy, and will be useful for thin film applications relying on high porosity, such as humidity sensors and super-capacitors. PACS 68.55.Jk; 68.55.Ac; 81.05.Rm; 61.46.+w; 81.15.Ef     

Nanostructure fabrication by glancing angle ion beam assisted deposition of silicon

Glancing angle deposition by utilizing an ion beam sputter process and a controlled substrate rotation is used to deposit silicon nanostructures with different structure varieties. The structures are grown on seeded and plain [100] silicon substrates at room temperature. The ratio of deposition rate to substrate angular frequency and the substrate surface properties determine the nanostructure geometry, size and assembly. PACS 61.46.+w; 81.05.Gc; 81.15.Cd     

Rugate filters prepared by rapidly alternating deposition

A methodology for the fabrication of composite (Nb₂O₅)_1-x(SiO₂)_x thin-film rugate filters by using pulsed direct current magnetron sputtering is presented. The two materials are mixed using rapidly alternating deposition technology. The optical properties of the composite films varying with the composition of the material are studied in detail. Refractive indices between 1.50 and 2.14 can be realized in our coating system. Two designed rugate filters with a reflection band at the wavelength of 532 nm are fabricated using an automatic deposition process. The microstructure of the rugate filter is investigated by using scanning electron microscopy. The calculated and the measured transmittance spectra are in good agreement with each other. The causes of the slight differences between them are also analysed.     

Fabrication of 2D–3D photonic crystal heterostructures by glancing angle deposition

We fabricate 2D–3D photonic crystal heterostructures based on the silicon [001]-diamond:1 square spiral geometry using glancing angle deposition. We compare the normal incidence reflection properties of the fabricated 2D–3D heterostructures to simulated spectra generated using finite-difference time-domain calculations. Reflection peaks are observed, resulting from the presence of a photonic band gap, and defect modes are created by the 2D layer. Deterioration of the reflectance peaks with increased number of vertical spiral periods is observed. A series of square spiral structures are fabricated with a varying number of vertical periods to quantify the degradation of reflection peaks. At normal light incidence, a maximum reflection peak is observed from the film with three vertical periods. Beyond three spiral rotations, deterioration of the substrate-plane periodicity causes scattering losses.     

Graded index broadband antireflection coating prepared by glancing angle deposition for a high-power laser system

This paper reports that SiO₂ is selected to fabricate broadband antireflection (AR) coatings on fused silica substrate by using glancing angle deposition and physical vapour deposition. Through accurate control of the graded index of the SiO₂ layer, transmittance of the graded broadband AR coating can achieve an average value of 98% across a spectral range of 300--1850~nm. Moreover, a laser-induced damage threshold measurement of the fabricated AR coating is performed by using a one-on-one protocol according to ISO11254-1, resulting in an average damage threshold of 17.2~J/cm$^{2}$.     

Photocatalytic properties of TiO2 thin films obtained by glancing angle deposition

Titanium dioxide (TiO₂) thin films with different nanostructures such as nano-particles and separated vertical columns were grown by glancing angle deposition (GLAD) in an electron beam evaporation system. The photocatalytic properties of grown TiO₂ films with different deposition angles and different annealing temperatures were evaluated by following decomposition of methyl orange under ultraviolet (UV) light irradiation. The results suggest that increased surface area due to the GLAD process could improve the photocatalytic properties of TiO₂ films.     

Controllable nanostructure and optical properties of ZrO2 thin films by glancing angle deposition

In this paper, nanostructured ZrO₂ films were prepared by electron beam evaporation with the glancing angle deposition (GLAD) technique. Columnar films with voids in between formed owing to the self-shadowing effect and the limited diffusion of deposited atoms. The microstructure evolves from slanted columnar structure to helical and pillar structures as the substrate rotational speed increases. The diameter of the columns is in the range of 30–50 nm. A higher rotational speed favors a larger nodule size and a greater surface roughness. Due to the porous structure, the refractive index n of GLAD ZrO₂ films varies from 1.75 to 1.80, lower than that of bulk material. A maximum value of birefringence (Δn=0.03) is obtained in a slanted columnar structure, and the relationship between birefringence and microstructure orientation is discussed. Our results demonstrate that glancing angle deposition is a feasible approach for designing the nanostructure and optical properties of thin films.     

Homogeneity analysis of sculptured thin films deposited in symmetric style through glancing angle deposition technique

The symmetric deposition technique is often used to improve the uniformity of sculptured thin film （STF）. In this paper, optical properties of STF with the columnar angles 4-/3 are analyzed theoretically, based on the characteristic matrix method for extraordinary waves. Then, the transmittances of uniformity monolayer and bilayer STF in symmetrical style are calculated to show the effect of the bilayer structure on the optical properties of STF. The inhomogeneity of STF is involved in analyzing the differences in transmittance and phase retardation between monolayer and bilayer STF deposited in symmetric style. The results show that optical homogeneity of STF can be improved by depositing in symmetric style at the normal incidence, but it is not the same case as the oblique incidence.     

Morphology control of tungsten nanorods grown by glancing angle RF magnetron sputtering under variable argon pressure and flow rate

Morphologically novel tungsten nanorods (WNRs) with the co-existence of two crystalline phases, α-W (thermodynamically stable) and β-W, were fabricated by glancing angle RF magnetron sputtering technique under various Ar pressures and flow rates. For these nanorods, a significant variation in their morphology and surface roughness was observed. These structures could be useful in a wide range of applications such as field emission, robust superhydrophobic coatings, energy, and medicine.     

Controlled growth of standing Ag nanorod arrays on bare Si substrate using glancing angle deposition for self-cleaning applications

A facile approach to manipulate the hydrophobicity of surface by controlled growth of standing Ag nanorod arrays is presented. Instead of following the complicated conventional method of the template-assisted growth, the morphology or particularly average diameter and number density (nanorods cm^?2) of nanorods were controlled on bare Si substrate by simply varying the deposition rate during glancing angle deposition. The contact angle measurements showed that the evolution of Ag nanorods reduces the surface energy and makes an increment in the apparent water contact angle compared to the plain Ag thin film. The contact angle was found to increase for the Ag nanorod samples grown at lower deposition rates. Interestingly, the morphology of the nanorod arrays grown at very low deposition rate (1.2 Å?sec^?1) results in a self-cleaning superhydrophobic surface of contact angle about 157° and a small roll-off angle about 5°. The observed improvement in hydrophobicity with change in the morphology of nanorod arrays is explained as the effect of reduction in solid fraction within the framework of Cassie–Baxter model. These self-cleaning Ag nanorod arrays could have a significant impact in wide range of applications such as anti-icing coatings, sensors and solar panels.     

Microstructure and multiphoton luminescence of Au nanocrystals prepared by using glancing deposition method

Au crystal columns embedded in SiO₂ with an average length of 480 nm and diameter of 30 nm were prepared by radio frequency co-sputtering technique with glancing angle. The photoluminescence (PL) of the Au-SiO₂ crystal column film exhibited polarization characteristic. With an increase of the laser power, the slope ∂ log(PL intensity)/∂ log(laser power) changed from 2 to 3, which indicated that the PL of Au-SiO₂ crystal columns were induced by two- and three-photon absorption, respectively.     

ZnO films grown by successive chemical solution deposition

ZnO films were grown from 0.1-M zincate solutions on stainless-steel and aluminosilicate glass substrates by the successive chemical solution deposition method. The structure, morphology, composition, and optical emission properties of the films were studied by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and photoluminescence techniques. Results revealed that the as-grown film contains a substantial amount of amorphous zinc hydroxide (15–25%), at least on its surface. This can be reduced to 7% by annealing the film in argon (350 °C, 1 h). Despite the presence of the hydroxide phase, the films hexagonal lattice constants match the standard values. The films surface texture and the grains shape and preferential orientation depend on the type of the substrate and its surface conditioning. The UV photoluminescence emission from as-grown films at 3.22±0.04 eV (380–390 nm) and its suppression due to the effect of chlorine are addressed. PACS 81.16.Be; 81.05.Dz; 78.55.Et; 79.60.-i; 68.55.Jk     

Gradient-index narrow-bandpass filter fabricated with glancing-angle deposition

Glancing-angle deposition (GLAD) is a fabrication method capable of producing thin films with engineered nanoscale porosity variations. GLAD can be used to create optical thin-film interference filters from a single source material by modification of the film refractive index through control of film porosity. We present the effects of introducing a layer of constant low density into the center of a rugate thin-film filter fabricated with the GLAD technique. A rugate filter is characterized by a sinusoidal refractive-index profile. Embedding a layer of constant refractive index, with a thickness equal to one period of the rugate index variation, causes a narrow bandpass to appear within the filter's larger stop band. Transmittance measurements of such a gradient-index narrow-bandpass filter, formed with titanium dioxide, revealed an 83% transmittance peak at a vacuum wavelength of 522 nm, near the center of the stop band, with a FWHM bandwidth of 15 nm.