Optical properties of sputtered silver granular films

In this research we study optical absorption and morphology of silver films prepared with a sputtering method. Silver granular films are obtained on a glass substrate for films with thickness smaller than about 60 angstrom. Superficial silver clusters of around 100 nm in diameter are clearly seen in the atomic force micrographs. The absorption of these samples are characterized by plasmon excitation in the 450-650 nm spectral range, which differs from the known excitation of silver nanoparticles fabricated by different techniques. The optical absorption of silver granular films depend on sputtering conditions like substrate temperature or deposition rate and correlates with the surface morphology.