Fabrication and characterization of large metallic nanodots arrays for organic thin film solar cells using anodic aluminum oxide templates

We present a soft method for the fabrication of well controlled plasmonic nanodots on large ITO substrate for organic solar cells. Masks of nanopatterned aluminum oxide are elaborated and deposited on ITO substrates before metal deposition. After removal of the mask, well organized and isolated metallic nanodots are observed. In this article, we focus on gold or silver nanostructures: they show a Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) in the visible region, an important feature for their integration in organic thin film solar cells and the final improvement of the optical properties of the cell. In addition, their near field enhancement capacity is also clearly demonstrated by surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy and FDTD method simulation. An additional advantage of this protocol is that it can be used on any kind of surface and with different metals, depending on the final application. ► Fabrication of metallic (gold and silver) nanodots on glass/ITO substrate using AAO lithography. ► Those nanostructures show a clear Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) in the visible range. ► SERS measurement and FDTD method simulation confirm that they show a good optical near field enhancement. ► Both features are promising for their integration in OPV.