Silica nanoparticle crystals can be used for photonics, chemical separations, filtration, and sensing applications. These crystals are loosely held together and, unless treated properly with high temperature sintering(typically &gt; 1100 degrees C), will disperse when exposed to aqueous solutions. The goal of this work is to form these crystals and increase their strength without the use of high temperatures. The crystals were deposited via vertical evaporative deposition of silica nanoparticles from an ethanolic solution onto quartz microscope slides. Thin crystals formed defects such as vertical cracks and horizontal drying lines. Improvements were made to the deposition process to mitigate these problems, including tighter control of the environmental conditions, and the fabrication of a miniature deposition table. The impact of lower heat treatments on the strength of the deposited silica crystals were then measured by nanoindentation.

Deposition and sintering techniques to strengthen silica nanoparticle crystals

255th National Meeting (2018)

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