Pavel Solař

Nylon-sputtered nanoparticles: fabrication and basic properties

Nylon-sputtered nanoparticles were prepared using a simple gas aggregation cluster source based on a planar magnetron (Haberland type) and equipped with a nylon target. Plasma polymer particles originated in an aggregation chamber and travelled to a main (deposition) chamber with a gas flow through an orifice. The deposited nanoparticles were observed to have a cauliflower-like structure. The nanoparticles were found to be nitrogen-rich with N/C ratio close to 0.5. An increase in rf power from 60 to 100 W resulted in a decrease in mean particle size from 210 to 168 nm whereas an increase in their residence time in the cluster source from 0.7 to 4.6 s resulted in an increase in the size from 73 to 231 nm.

Single-step generation of metal-plasma polymer multicore@shell nanoparticles from the gas phase

Nanoparticles composed of multiple silver cores and a plasma polymer shell (multicore@shell) were prepared in a single step with a gas aggregation cluster source operating with Ar/hexamethyldisiloxane mixtures and optionally oxygen. The size distribution of the metal inclusions as well as the chemical composition and the thickness of the shells were found to be controlled by the composition of the working gas mixture. Shell matrices ranging from organosilicon plasma polymer to nearly stoichiometric SiO2 were obtained. The method allows facile fabrication of multicore@shell nanoparticles with tailored functional properties, as demonstrated here with the optical response.

Advances and challenges in the field of plasma polymer nanoparticles

This contribution reviews plasma polymer nanoparticles produced by gas aggregation cluster sources either via plasma polymerization of volatile monomers or via radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering of conventional polymers. The formation of hydrocarbon, fluorocarbon, silicon- and nitrogen-containing plasma polymer nanoparticles as well as core@shell nanoparticles based on plasma polymers is discussed with a focus on the development of novel nanostructured surfaces.

Magnetron-sputtered copper nanoparticles: lost in gas aggregation and found by in situ X-ray scattering

Magnetron discharge in a cold buffer gas represents a liquid-free approach to the synthesis of metal nanoparticles (NPs) with tailored structure, chemical composition and size. Despite a large number of metal NPs that were successfully produced by this method, the knowledge of the mechanisms of their nucleation and growth in the discharge is still limited, mainly because of the lack of in situ experimental data. In this work, we present the results of in situ Small Angle X-ray Scattering measurements performed in the vicinity of a Cu magnetron target with Ar used as a buffer gas. Condensation of atomic metal vapours is found to occur mainly at several mm distance from the target plane. The NPs are found to be captured preferentially within a region circumscribed by the magnetron plasma ring. In this capture zone, the NPs grow to the size of 90 nm whereas smaller ones sized 10-20 nm may escape and constitute a NP beam. Time-resolved measurements of the discharge indicate that the electrostatic force acting on the charged NPs may be largely responsible for their capturing nearby the magnetron.

Calorimetric investigations in a gas aggregation source

A gas aggregation source based on DC magnetron sputtering was investigated using a passive thermal probe and supplementary diagnostics (Langmuir probe and quartz crystal microbalance). Parameter variations of pressure, axial distance, and magnetron current have been performed for three different targets (pure Cu, pure W, composite Cu/W) in argon discharge. The measurements showed the energy flux to be significantly higher for the case of the pure tungsten and the composite target compared to the copper target, which is likely a result of the strongly increased amount of neutrals being reflected from the heavier targets. Furthermore, gas rarefaction by the sputtered atoms was found to be essential for the understanding of the observed energy flux and that the dominant contributors to the energy flux in the higher pressure regime are comparable to those observed in the conventional lower pressure regime. Selected deposited films have been investigated ex-situ by scanning electron microscopy, which allowed us to gain insight into the nanoparticle formation in relation to the observed energy conversion.A gas aggregation source based on DC magnetron sputtering was investigated using a passive thermal probe and supplementary diagnostics (Langmuir probe and quartz crystal microbalance). Parameter variations of pressure, axial distance, and magnetron current have been performed for three different targets (pure Cu, pure W, composite Cu/W) in argon discharge. The measurements showed the energy flux to be significantly higher for the case of the pure tungsten and the composite target compared to the copper target, which is likely a result of the strongly increased amount of neutrals being reflected from the heavier targets. Furthermore, gas rarefaction by the sputtered atoms was found to be essential for the understanding of the observed energy flux and that the dominant contributors to the energy flux in the higher pressure regime are comparable to those observed in the conventional lower pressure regime. Selected deposited films have been investigated ex-situ by scanning electron microscopy, which allowed u...