Optical absorption of composites of nanocrystalline silver prepared by electrodeposition

Silver particles of average diameters in the range 10.3-25.7 nm have been grown within a gel medium by an electrodeposition technique. Detailed optical absorption characteristics in the wavelength range 250-600 nm have been investigated for nanocomposites comprising these particles dispersed in a polystyrene matrix. Absorption maximum occurs at a wavelength around 350 nm, which increases as the metal particle size is increased. Mie theory with the incorporation of a distribution of particle size gives remarkable agreement with the experimental data. The electrical conductivity as extracted from the theoretical analysis for particles with diameters similar to 3 nm is found to be less than Mott's minimum metallic conductivity. This indicates the possibility of a metal insulator transition in this system, which appears to be consistent with earlier electrical conductivity measurements. (C) 1998 American Institute of Physics.