Plasmonic gold nanoisland on TiO2: effect of dewetting temperature

Here we report the effect of annealing/dewetting temperature on the development of plasmonic gold (Au) nanoislands on anatase titanium dioxide (TiO 2 ) film. A 140 nm thick TiO 2 film was deposited using atomic layer deposition (ALD) and 6 nm Au was deposited using e-beam sputtering. Samples were annealed at 100, 150, 200, 250, 300 and 350 ˚C for 3 minutes and analyzed using ellipsometer, scanning electron microscope (SEM) and ultraviolet-visible (UV-VIS) spectroscopy. Plasmonic Au nanoislands formed at annealing conditions of temperature above 200 ˚C for 3 minutes. Also, no phase change of anatase TiO 2 was found for annealing temperatures below 350 ˚C for a heating period of 3 minutes.