Characterization of ion track-etched conical nanopores in thermal and PECVD SiO2 using small angle X-ray scattering
Conical nanopores in amorphous SiO2 thin films fabricated using the ion track etching technique show promising potential for filtration, sensing, and nanofluidic applications. The characterization of the pore morphology and size distribution, along with its dependence on the material properties and...
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Beilstein-Institut
2025-06-01
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| Series: | Beilstein Journal of Nanotechnology |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3762/bjnano.16.68 |
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| author | Shankar Dutt Rudradeep Chakraborty Christian Notthoff Pablo Mota-Santiago Christina Trautmann Patrick Kluth |
| author_facet | Shankar Dutt Rudradeep Chakraborty Christian Notthoff Pablo Mota-Santiago Christina Trautmann Patrick Kluth |
| author_sort | Shankar Dutt |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Conical nanopores in amorphous SiO2 thin films fabricated using the ion track etching technique show promising potential for filtration, sensing, and nanofluidic applications. The characterization of the pore morphology and size distribution, along with its dependence on the material properties and fabrication parameters, is crucial to designing nanopore systems for specific applications. Here, we present a comprehensive study of track-etched nanopores in thermal and plasma-enhanced chemical vapor-deposited (PECVD) SiO2 using synchrotron-based small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS). The nanopores were fabricated by irradiating the samples with 89 MeV, 185 MeV, and 1.6 GeV Au ions, followed by hydrofluoric acid etching. We present a new approach for analyzing the complex highly anisotropic two-dimensional SAXS patterns of the pores by reducing the analysis to two orthogonal one-dimensional slices of the data. The simultaneous fit of the data enables an accurate determination of the pore geometry and size distribution. The analysis reveals substantial differences between the nanopores in thermal and PECVD SiO2. The track-to-bulk etching rate ratio is significantly different for the two materials, producing nanopores with cone angles that differ by almost a factor of two. Furthermore, thermal SiO2 exhibits an exceptionally narrow size distribution of only 2–4%, while PECVD SiO2 shows a higher variation ranging from 8% to 18%. The impact of different ion energies on the size of the nanopores was also investigated for pores in PECVD SiO2 and shows only negligible influence. These findings provide crucial insights for the controlled fabrication of conical nanopores in different materials, which is essential for optimizing membrane performance in applications that require precise pore geometry. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-a5e25cd3d2bb4e07bdc1802bce65b111 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2190-4286 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | Beilstein-Institut |
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| series | Beilstein Journal of Nanotechnology |
| spelling | doaj-art-a5e25cd3d2bb4e07bdc1802bce65b1112025-08-20T03:12:35ZengBeilstein-InstitutBeilstein Journal of Nanotechnology2190-42862025-06-0116189990910.3762/bjnano.16.682190-4286-16-68Characterization of ion track-etched conical nanopores in thermal and PECVD SiO2 using small angle X-ray scatteringShankar Dutt0Rudradeep Chakraborty1Christian Notthoff2Pablo Mota-Santiago3Christina Trautmann4Patrick Kluth5Department of Materials Physics, Research School of Physics, The Australian National University, Canberra ACT 2601, Australia Department of Materials Physics, Research School of Physics, The Australian National University, Canberra ACT 2601, Australia Department of Materials Physics, Research School of Physics, The Australian National University, Canberra ACT 2601, Australia ANSTO-Australian Synchrotron, Clayton VIC 3168, Australia GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung, Planckstr. 1, 64291 Darmstadt, Germany Department of Materials Physics, Research School of Physics, The Australian National University, Canberra ACT 2601, Australia Conical nanopores in amorphous SiO2 thin films fabricated using the ion track etching technique show promising potential for filtration, sensing, and nanofluidic applications. The characterization of the pore morphology and size distribution, along with its dependence on the material properties and fabrication parameters, is crucial to designing nanopore systems for specific applications. Here, we present a comprehensive study of track-etched nanopores in thermal and plasma-enhanced chemical vapor-deposited (PECVD) SiO2 using synchrotron-based small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS). The nanopores were fabricated by irradiating the samples with 89 MeV, 185 MeV, and 1.6 GeV Au ions, followed by hydrofluoric acid etching. We present a new approach for analyzing the complex highly anisotropic two-dimensional SAXS patterns of the pores by reducing the analysis to two orthogonal one-dimensional slices of the data. The simultaneous fit of the data enables an accurate determination of the pore geometry and size distribution. The analysis reveals substantial differences between the nanopores in thermal and PECVD SiO2. The track-to-bulk etching rate ratio is significantly different for the two materials, producing nanopores with cone angles that differ by almost a factor of two. Furthermore, thermal SiO2 exhibits an exceptionally narrow size distribution of only 2–4%, while PECVD SiO2 shows a higher variation ranging from 8% to 18%. The impact of different ion energies on the size of the nanopores was also investigated for pores in PECVD SiO2 and shows only negligible influence. These findings provide crucial insights for the controlled fabrication of conical nanopores in different materials, which is essential for optimizing membrane performance in applications that require precise pore geometry.https://doi.org/10.3762/bjnano.16.68etched ion trackssio2small angle x-ray scattering (saxs)swift heavy ion irradiationtrack-etched nanopores |
| spellingShingle | Shankar Dutt Rudradeep Chakraborty Christian Notthoff Pablo Mota-Santiago Christina Trautmann Patrick Kluth Characterization of ion track-etched conical nanopores in thermal and PECVD SiO2 using small angle X-ray scattering Beilstein Journal of Nanotechnology etched ion tracks sio2 small angle x-ray scattering (saxs) swift heavy ion irradiation track-etched nanopores |
| title | Characterization of ion track-etched conical nanopores in thermal and PECVD SiO2 using small angle X-ray scattering |
| title_full | Characterization of ion track-etched conical nanopores in thermal and PECVD SiO2 using small angle X-ray scattering |
| title_fullStr | Characterization of ion track-etched conical nanopores in thermal and PECVD SiO2 using small angle X-ray scattering |
| title_full_unstemmed | Characterization of ion track-etched conical nanopores in thermal and PECVD SiO2 using small angle X-ray scattering |
| title_short | Characterization of ion track-etched conical nanopores in thermal and PECVD SiO2 using small angle X-ray scattering |
| title_sort | characterization of ion track etched conical nanopores in thermal and pecvd sio2 using small angle x ray scattering |
| topic | etched ion tracks sio2 small angle x-ray scattering (saxs) swift heavy ion irradiation track-etched nanopores |
| url | https://doi.org/10.3762/bjnano.16.68 |
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