Particle layering in the ceramic-metal thin film Pt-Al2O3 -: art. no. 193407

Experiments performed by x-ray reflectivity, grazing incidence small angle x-ray scattering (GISAXS), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) on a cosputtered nanocermet thin film of Pt-Al2O3 are presented. It is shown that the morphology of such a heterogeneous material can be well interpreted by combining the information obtained from the three techniques. In particular, the layering of metal nanoparticles in the immediate vicinity of the substrate is clearly evidenced. GISAXS results are interpreted via a model which yields spherical nanoparticles of diameter 2R=3.1 nm, separated on the average by a distance of 5.8 nm. The evidence for the layering of particles close to the substrate is deduced from the analysis of the specular reflectivity and probed directly by TEM.