Mesoscopic self-assembly of gold islands on diblock-copolymer films

We describe the fabrication and characterization of self-assembled gold island arrays on diblock-copolymer thin films. The natural tendency of these polymers to form ordered phases is used to induce selective aggregation of evaporated gold metal during an annealing process. We obtain well-defined, nanoscale island arrays aligned with one of the copolymer blocks. Near perfect segregation is achieved between the two domains. Two types of diblock-copolymer systems are discussed, together with the resulting island patterns.