Effect of electric fields on the synthesis of nanoparticles of tin and silicon in a liquid environment
Abstract
The effect of externally applied electric fields on the size and morphology of
nanoparticles fabricated by laser ablation was investigated. In this method, a pulsed laser
beam was focused onto a solid target of either silicon or tin and the laser beam ablated the
target at the liquid-solid interface. The laser beam vaporizes the target material forming a
plasma plume which contains ions, electrons, nanoparticles, and nano clusters. High
pressures, high temperatures and high energy densities are created in this method. These
conditions are favorable for the formation of metastable phases resulting in novel products
depending on the nature of the liquid and solid. The ablated products were studied under
bright field transmission electron microscopy and high resolution transmission electron
microscopy. It has been found that the sizes of the nanoparticles were influenced by the
application of an externally applied electric field during laser irradiation.
Table of Contents
Introduction -- Theory -- Experiment -- Analysis of collected data -- Conclusion -- Appendix A. Properties of silicon -- Appendix B. Properties of tin
Degree
M.S.