Preparation of Silicon Nanopillars Array Using Gold Nanoparticles as Etching Mask

The regular and uniform nanopillar arrays exhibit potential applications for nano-devices.The uniform gold nano-particle monolayer is formed on silicon substrate by self-assembly and the silicon nanopillar arrays were fabricated by reactive ion etching using gold nano-particles monolayer as etching mask,and the influence of the etch time on the silicon nanopillar arrays was investigated.If the etch time is too long,the over-etching is produced.When the time is less than 120 s,a large area silicon nanopillar or nanocone array can be obtained which their diameter is less than 20 nm and their aspect ratio is larger than 10.The results provide a simple,economic and effective method for fabrication of uniform nanopillar arrays on silicon substrate.