Metal nanodot arrays have unique optical characteristics. And they are expected to find applications in biosensors and optical devices. The authors are proposing that simple and efficient manufacturing processes are introduced for metal nanodot arrays. These processes are based on the combination of thin metal film coatings deposited on substrates and thermal self-aggregation. In this paper, we aim to observe thermal self-aggregation process by using in-situ SEM observation technique with heating stage. And we also study influence of nano plastic forming on thermal self-aggregation process. As results, we showed the follows: (1) In the observation of thermal self-aggregation process of Au nanodot arrays, thin Au films, which deposited on a quartz glass substrate by using a spatter coater, was separated into many pieces of complicated island shapes. Separated Au with island shape was aggregated into round dot shape. (2) When thin Au film was grooved by nano plastic forming, separation of the film proceeded from the fabricated groove. And nano Au structures were aligned in a groove pattern. Nano plastic forming was effective for controlling the thermal self-aggregated shape of thin Au film.
