Organic/inorganic nanocomposites for high-dielectric-constant materials

A different approach to fabricate metallic nanostructures in an insulating organic matrix in situ using thermal coevaporation is demonstrated. The method is used to fabricate metal-organic percolative nanocomposite capacitors. Thermal annealing of the nanocomposite films results in a dramatic enhancement (> 50 times at 10 kHz) of the dielectric constant accompanied by significant lowering (approximately four times) of conductivity and dissipation loss, especially at low frequencies. The improved performance is attributed to structural modifications in the films resulting from enhanced phase segregation of constituents, induced by annealing at optimized temperatures. (C) 2008 American Institute of Physics.