title: Fabrication of nanoscale gold disk electrodes using ultrashort pulse etching.
abstract: A novel method for preparing a nanometer-sized gold disk electrode is described. The electrode was fabricated by electrochemical etching of a gold wire, insulating the etched wire with a varnish with the exception of the apex, and cutting down the apex by applying ultrashort (40 ns) etching pulses in an HCl solution. Cyclic voltammograms of a 0.10 M ferrocyanide solution recorded at the electrode showed that a series of etching pulses gradually reduced the diffusion-limited current at the electrode by etching its apex. Characterization by cyclic voltammetry and scanning electron microscopy revealed the transformation of a cone-shaped apex into a disk-shaped electrode with a radius of typically between 50 and 250 nm.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry and Center for Integrated Molecular Systems, Pohang University of Science and Technology, Pohang 790-784, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Dae-Ha
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Woo
authors.forename: Heon
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kang
authors.forename: Su-Moon
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Park