PREPARATION AND SURFACE PLASMON RESONANCE OF COPPER NANOCAP ARRAYS

Copper nanocap arrays, consisting of a SiO2 core with a Cu cap, were prepared by chemical synthesis combined with physical evaporation technique. The obtained samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, X-ray diffraction,and ultraviolet-visible-near-infrared spectrophotometer. The copper nanocap arrays were found to exhibit tunable surface plasmon resonance (SPR) absorption peaks that were red-shifted as the ratio of the SiO2 core diameter to the Cu cap thickness increased. While the cap thickness varied between 20 nm and 50 nm, the SPR peak shifted from 1650 nm to 1230 nm. While the core diameter varied between 140 nm and 400 nm, the longitudinal SPR peak shifted from 1243 nm to 1830 nm.