Noble metal nanocrystals at the surface of nitride semiconductors: synthesis, deposition and surface characterization

Currently an extensive range of noble metal colloidal nanocrystals (NCs) can be readily produced by diverse chemical methods. These nanomaterials present novel physical properties and can be regarded as building blocks to the nanofabrication of smaller, energy efficient and faster devices. Moreover, when these NCs are deposited on the surface of luminescent semiconductors, as it is the case of GaN-based heterostructures, exciton coupling with the metal plasmons may occur. In this work we report on the deposition of noble metal NC at the surface of InGaN/GaN multiple quantum wells (MQW), with efficient light emission in the visible range. We investigate the surface organization of Ag and Au NCs with sizes ranging from 5-30 nm as a function of deposition conditions. Scanning Electron Microscopy and Atomic Force Microscopy clearly showed that the metallic nanoparticles were successfully incorporated within the MQWs of the nitride semiconductors.