Optical properties of silver nanoparticles due to their structural defects

The relationship between defects in island silver films produced by thermal spraying and their optical properties is studied. The effect of defects in nanoparticles on the photoelectric effect has been studied. Radiation with a wavelength of 355 nm (quantum energy 3.5 eV) causes a single-photon photoelectric effect, while the work function of bulk silver is not lower than 4.2 eV. A hypothesis was put forward about the relationship between defects in nanoparticles and their absorption spectra. During deposition, an absorption peak appears on the extinction spectra of a silver island film at a wavelength of 370 nm, which disappears within several tens of minutes after the end of deposition. It has also been shown that defects in islands can be created artificially by irradiating them with ultraviolet light, which leads to an increase in the rate of self-diffusion in these islands upon heating.