Thermal Conductivity of Ordered Mesoporous Nanocrystalline Silicon Thin Films Made from Magnesium Reduction of Polymer- Templated Silica

This paper reports the cross-plane thermal conductivity of ordered mesoporous nanocrystalline silicon thin films between 25 and 315 K. The films were produced by evaporation-induced self-assembly of mesoporous silica followed by magnesium reduction. The periodic ordering of pores in mesoporous silicon was characterized by X-ray diffraction and direct SEM imaging. The average crystallite size, porosity, and film thickness were about 13 nm, 25−35%, and 140−340 nm, respectively. The pores were arranged in a face-centered cubic lattice. The cross-plane thermal conductivity of the mesoporous silicon thin films was measured using the 3ω method. It was between 3 and 5 orders of magnitude smaller than that of bulk single crystal silicon in the temperature range considered. The effects of temperature, film thickness, and copolymer template on the thermal conductivity were investigated. A model based on kinetic theory was used to accurately predict the measured thermal conductivity for all temperatures. On one hand, both the measured thermal conductivity and the model predictions showed a temperature dependence of k ∝ T at low temperatures, typical of amorphous and strongly disordered materials. On the other hand, at high temperatures the thermal conductivity of mesoporous silicon films reached a maximum, indicating a crystalline-like behavior. These results will be useful in designing mesoporous silicon with desired thermal conductivity by tuning its morphology for various applications.