The edges and terrace effect of Ag particles on optical resonance absorption property

Alternative Ag and SiO₂ multilayers are prepared by using radio frequency magnetron sputtering. The Ag particles are found to diffuse toward and mostly accumulate near the surface of the Ag—SiO₂ composite film via a rapid thermal treatment. Different shapes of the Ag particles are obtained by changing the thickness of each Ag and SiO₂ layer. The response absorption property of the Ag composite film is also investigated. We relate the resonance absorption to the surface level and the Fermi level. To induce the obvious resonance absorption in an Ag composite film, it is necessary to maintain special shapes with sharp edges and wide terraces and to maintain the particle sizes ranging from 0 nm to 100 nm.