Fabrication of wafer-size monolayer close-packed colloidal crystals via slope self-assembly and thermal treatment

Langmuir. 2013 Nov 19;29(46):14017-23. doi: 10.1021/la402652t. Epub 2013 Nov 5.

Abstract

We developed a simple and general approach for constructing a wafer-scale monolayer, close-packed polystyrene (PS), and SiO2 sphere arrays, namely colloidal crystals, which have significant potential in various applications. The method combines slope self-assembly and thermal treatment to achieve large-area and high-quality colloidal crystal with a proper slant angle (θ) and latex concentration (volume fraction, φ). The dependence of the structures of colloidal crystals on a dispersion system was also investigated. Moreover, a theoretical analysis of the slope self-assembly method was proposed. In addition, we applied the method to assemble PS spheres on different kinds of substrates, which indicates that the method is a versatile and reliable way to fabricate monolayer colloidal crystals.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Colloids
  • Polystyrenes / chemistry
  • Silicon Dioxide / chemistry
  • Temperature*
  • Water / chemistry*

Substances

  • Colloids
  • Polystyrenes
  • Water
  • Silicon Dioxide