Size-dependent Schottky Barrier Height in self-assembled gold nanoparticles

(Au nanocluster)/$6H-SiC$ Schottky contacts were electrically characterized by conductive atomic force microscopy, collecting a high number of current-voltage $(I-V)$ curves. The main observed result is the Schottky barrier height (SBH) dependence on the cluster size. The SBH increases from $1.35±0.01to1.77±0.01eV$ when the cluster size increases from $1.5to6.8nm$ and it tends, asymptotically, to the theoretical SBH of the macroscopic contact $Au∕SiC$ $(∼1.9eV)$⁠. This behavior is interpreted considering the thermoionic transport theory through the Au cluster/SiC barrier coupled with the concept of ballistic transport within few electron quantum dots.