Work

Gold nanorods as nanotransducers to monitor the growth and swelling of ultrathin polymer films

Year: 2012

Type: article

Abstract: In this work, we demonstrate that plasmonic nanostructures can be employed as nanoscale transducers to monitor the growth and phase transitions in ultrathin polymer films. In particular, gold nanorods with high refractive index sensitivity (~150 nm/refractive index unit (RIU)) were employed to probe the growth and swelling of polyelectrolyte multilayers (PEM). By comparing the wavelength shift and extinction intensity increase of the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) of the gold nanorods coated with PEM in air and water, the swelling of PEM was estimated to be 26% ± 6%. The swelling was quantitatively confirmed with independent thickness measurement of PEM in dry and swollen states using AFM. The deployment of shape-controlled metal nanostructures with high refractive index sensitivity represents a novel and facile approach for monitoring the phase transition in polymers with nanoscale resolution.

Source: Nanotechnology

DOI: 10.1088/0957-4484/23/25/255502

Authors: Limei Tian, Max Fei, Ramesh Kattumenu, Abdennour Abbas, Srikanth Singamaneni

Institution: Washington University in St. Louis

Language: English

Topic: Gold and Silver Nanoparticles Synthesis and Applications

Subfield: Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials

Field: Materials Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: bronze

Funders: U.S. Department of Defense, Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs, Air Force Research Laboratory

Awards: G3780238105, G4119534169, Label-Free, Point-of-Service Assay for Noninvasive Detection of Kidney Cancer