Morphology and electrical resistivity of metallic nanostructures

The electrical resistivity r of Au, Al and Cu films prepared by thermal evaporation with thickness range from 3 to 100 nm on glass substrates were studied. The r value was measured and theoretically evaluated by the Fuchs–Sondheimer (F–S), the Mayadas–Shatzkes (M–S), and the combined models. Measured r values in Al films were about seven times minor than for Au and Cu films for the minimum (3 nm) thickness. We measured the grain size and its distribution from AFM images, finding a normal logarithmic distribution. We obtained that main r contribution was due to grain boundaries, being most important for Cu and Au films. q 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.