Direct imaging of nanoparticle embedding into PS films

Non-contact Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) was used to study the embedding of 10 nm and 20 nm gold nano-particlcs into the surface of polystyrene films spin-coated onto silicon substrates. The rate of embedding was determined by measuring the apparent nanosphere height as a function of annealing time. This was accomplished by two different methods. In the first case, each image (after a specific annealing time) is acquired at a different spot on …