Publication

Abstract : In this article, a simple and reproducible technique for the synthesis of silver nanoparticles in organic phase without using external reducing agents is reported. The organic phase contains silver acetate as precursor, oleic acid and oleyl amine as capping molecules and diphenyl ether as solvent. Monodispersed silver nanoparticles with an average size of 5 nm could be easily synthesised at large scale and it was possible to isolate the particles suitable for electronics applications. The formation of silver nanoparticles has been characterised in terms of optical absorption, transmission electron microscopy images and small-angle X-ray scattering. Recovered silver nanoparticles reveal X-ray diffraction of a well grown-up fcc-Ag lattice. Chemical and thermal characterisations of silver nanopowders were carried out using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and thermogravimetric analysis, respectively. For the latter purpose, concentrated dispersions of silver nanoparticles were prepared and used for depositing uniform thin layers. Thin films were sintered at low temperature to obtain conductive films and the films were characterised using scanning electron microscope. Electrical conductivity of the conductive films was in the range 2–3 × 104 S cm−1.