Silver films coated on beech wood substrates by electroless plating method: Study of physical and electrical properties

Abstract High‐purity silver films were prepared on beech wood substrates using an electroless plating method, varying the coating temperature from 40 C to 80 C, to improve the physical and electrical properties of films. Characterizations were carried out by X‐ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) combined with energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), contact angle (CA), and electrical measurements. The XRD results confirmed the purity of the silver films and showed decreased crystalline grain size from 142.6 to 72.3 Å, when the coating temperature increased. The SEM results showed decreased thickness when the coating temperature increased. The thickness of the films was approximately decreased from 50 to 20 µm for the samples prepared at 40 C and 80 C, respectively. EDS analysis for silver films demonstrated the purity of the prepared films and showed the penetration of silver into the beech wood substrate until 100 µm. The CA measurements confirmed the increased hydrophilicity of films when the coating temperature increased, because of a decrease in the crystalline grain sizes and an increase in the content of carbon and oxygen traces. The electrical measurements showed improvement in the electric current values when operating at coating temperatures below or equal to 50 C, which corresponds to a relatively large crystallite size for silver.