01261nas a2200145   4500008004100000245009600041210006900137300001400206490000700220520078700227100001801014700002401032700001901056856004001075       2003                        eng d00aCoalescence of Nanometer Silver Islands on Oxides Grown by Filtered Cathodic Arc Deposition0 aCoalescence of Nanometer Silver Islands on Oxides Grown by Filte  a1634-16360 v823 a<p>Ultrathin silver films have been deposited on glass and oxide-coated glass using filtered cathodic arc deposition and, for comparison, magnetron sputtering. The energetic differences between these deposition methods lead to initially different film properties. Silver films made by cathodic arc deposition show an earlier onset of island coalescence, indicating a lower aspect ratio than islands produced by evaporation and sputtering. However, the as-deposited films are thermodynamically unstable, exhibiting changes on a timescale of minutes. While films of islands tend to increase their sheet resistance with time, the sheet resistance of contiguous films shows a decrease. Both effects can be explained by silver mobility driven to minimize film and interfacial energy.</p>1 aByon, Eungsun1 aOates, Thomas, W.H.1 aAnders, André  uhttp://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1558955