Temperature dependent electrical resistivity in nanocrystalline gold filmsmade by advanced gas deposition

Nanocrystalline gold films were made by advanced gas deposition. The mean c rystallite diameter lay between similar to 10 and similar to 80 nm dependin g on substrate temperature during deposition and annealing post-treatment, as found by x-ray diffractometry and transmission electron microscopy. Temp erature dependent resistivity rho was measured in the 4< T<300 K range. The log rho versus log T relationship displayed a discontinuity at a temperatu re T-cr lying between 10 and 7.2 K depending on crystallite size. This can be understood as a result of rho being dominated by electron scattering aga inst phonons and grain boundaries above and below T-cr, respectively. (C) 2 000 American Institute of Physics. [S0021-8979(00)01324-4].