Abstract We studied the process of Au whiskers formation from Au thin films deposited on the glass substrate and covered with a conform passivating alumina layer. We demonstrated that the film thickness and morphology play an important role in whiskers formation. Annealing of 10 nm thick Au film exhibiting the discontinuous, maze-like morphology resulted in the formation of Au whiskers. Straight gold whiskers of up to 25 μm in length with a constant diameter were obtained after annealing at the temperatures above 800 °C. The grown whiskers exhibited dislocation-free microstructure. Annealing of 20 nm thick passivated Au film exhibiting continuous morphology resulted in the constrained dewetting of the Au film underneath the alumina layer, and did not lead to the growth of whiskers. We proposed that the main driving force for the whiskers growth is the replacement of the Au/alumina and Au/glass interfaces by one alumina/glass interface of lower energy. We have developed a kinetic model of whiskers growth controlled by the diffusion of gold atoms along the Au/glass and Au/alumina interfaces. The estimated diffusivity was close to the self-diffusion coefficient on the surface of Au. We demonstrated that Au nanoparticles attached to the alumina layer could be easily stripped off from the glass substrate using ethanol.

中文翻译：

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薄钝化 Au 薄膜中的晶须生长

摘要 我们研究了从沉积在玻璃基板上并覆盖有共形钝化氧化铝层的 Au 薄膜形成 Au 晶须的过程。我们证明了薄膜厚度和形态在晶须形成中起着重要作用。10 nm 厚的 Au 薄膜的退火表现出不连续的迷宫状形态，导致 Au 晶须的形成。在高于 800 °C 的温度下退火后，获得长达 25 μm 且直径恒定的直金晶须。生长的晶须表现出无位错的微观结构。对表现出连续形态的 20 nm 厚钝化 Au 膜进行退火导致氧化铝层下方 Au 膜的去湿受限，并且不会导致晶须的生长。我们提出晶须生长的主要驱动力是用一个低能量的氧化铝/玻璃界面取代金/氧化铝和金/玻璃界面。我们开发了一个由金原子沿 Au/玻璃和 Au/氧化铝界面扩散控制的晶须生长动力学模型。估计的扩散率接近 Au 表面的自扩散系数。我们证明了使用乙醇可以很容易地从玻璃基板上剥离附着在氧化铝层上的 Au 纳米颗粒。估计的扩散率接近 Au 表面的自扩散系数。我们证明了使用乙醇可以很容易地从玻璃基板上剥离附着在氧化铝层上的 Au 纳米颗粒。估计的扩散率接近 Au 表面的自扩散系数。我们证明了使用乙醇可以很容易地从玻璃基板上剥离附着在氧化铝层上的 Au 纳米颗粒。