Laser Control of Specular and Diffuse Reflectance of Thin Aluminum Film-Isolator-Metal Structures for Anti-Counterfeiting and Plasmonic Color Applications

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Overall, this manuscript is well-written and demonstrates a fabrication method for thin aluminum film-isolator-metal mirror (TAFIM) structures that are applicable to plasmonic color applications. Based on the evidence in the manuscript, the reviewer recommends it for publication without revision.  

Author Response

We thank the reviewer for the positive comments on the manuscript. We are pleased that the reviewer recommends it for publication without revision.

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Dear authors,

I appreciated a lto your paper and the

presentation quality.

I will ask you a minor revision for two reasons

that are linked each other to the reproducibility issue

of such creative technique.

1) In Figure 3 it is possible to observe that sample with 3.5 mJ fluence 

is suffering of poor specular reflectance, while its diffuse one is in line

with the other samples. Do you think that maybe a reproduction of this sample will have same specular reflectance or it is possible to consider that such technique suffers of reproducibility ?

2) In fact, in the paper is missing a comment about reproducibility issues

that should be introduced in the discussion.

 

My best regards and compliments for the paper

Author Response

Please see the attachment.

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 3 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Nowak et al. demonstrated aluminum-based structures for anti-counterfeiting and plasmonic color applications. The paper really provides a unique approach to the application. My comments are as follows.

1.       Although the authors described the disadvantages of gold and silver in the introduction, I would suggest including a brief literature survey of the application of aluminum in this particular kind of application.

2.       In the fabrication part, the use and application of each and every component should be discussed clearly. For example, the TiO2. It would help attract a wider group of readers.

3.       In Figure 3b, a red shift in the peak is observed at higher fluence (up to 3.5 mJ cm-2), and again, the same peak is observed to be blue-shifted at higher power. The possible reason should be discussed.

4.       For effective anti-counterfeiting, a wide range of color combinations is essential to create complex and hard-to-replicate QR codes or patterns. Given the relatively limited color palette presented, could the authors propose ways to increase the variety? For instance, could modifications in the fabrication process or the use of different materials alongside aluminum expand the achievable color spectrum?

Author Response

Please see the attachment.

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Round 2

Reviewer 3 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The authors have addressed all the queries.