Surface plasmons in porous gold films

The surface plasmon resonance effects in porous gold (por-Au) films—nanocomposite porous films containing an ensemble of disordered gold nanoparticles—have been investigated by modulation-polarization spectroscopy. Por-Au films have been obtained by pulsed laser deposition (using a direct particle flow from an erosion torch formed by a YAG:Nd³⁺ laser in argon). The spectral and angular dependences of the polarization difference ρ(λ, θ) of internal-reflection coefficients of s- and p-polarized radiation in the Kretschmann geometry and the spectral dependences of isotropic reflection angles at ρ(θ) = 0 are measured. Two types of surface plasmon resonance are found: one occurs on isolated nanoparticles (dipole and multipole modes), and the other is due to the dipole–dipole interaction of neighboring nanoparticles. The frequency of electron plasma oscillations for the nanoparticle ensemble and the frequencies and decay parameters of resonances are determined. Dispersion relations for the radiative and nonradiative modes are presented. The negative sign of the dispersion branch of nonradiative modes of dipole–dipole interaction is explained by the spatial dispersion of permittivity. The relationships between the formation conditions of the films, their structure, and established resonance parameters (determining the resonant-optical properties of films) are discussed.     

Plasma-activated core-shell gold nanoparticle films with enhanced catalytic properties

Catalytically active gold nanoparticle films have been prepared from core-shell nanoparticles by plasma-activation and characterized by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Methane can be selectively oxidized into formic acid with an O₂–H₂ mixture in a catalytic wall reactor functionalized with plasma-activated gold nanoparticle films containing well-defined Au particles of about 3.5 nm in diameter. No catalytic activity was recorded over gold nanoparticle films prepared by thermal decomposition of core-shell nanoparticles due to particle agglomeration.     

AFM investigation of nanoparticles formed on silicon surface by femtosecond laser pulses

It is shown by atomic force microscopy that nanoparticles formed upon ablation of surface of single-crystal and porous silicon by femtosecond laser pulses have a lateral size from several tens to 200 nm and a height from 2 to 30 nm. Dependences of the nanoparticle sizes and surface concentrations on the residual pressure, which demonstrate the gas atmosphere influence on the nanoparticle formation, are obtained.     

Ultrasonic, chemical stability and preparation of self-assembled fullerene[C60]-gold nanoparticle films

C(60)-functionalized gold nanoparticle films were self-assembled on the reactive surface of glass slides functionalized with 3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane. The functionalized glass slides were alternately soaked in the solutions containing unmodified C(60) and 4-aminothiophenoxide/hexane thiolate-protected gold nanoparticles. Organic reaction (amination) facilitated the layer-by-layer multilayer film assembly. C(60)-functionalized gold nanoparticle films have grown up to several layers (upto 5 layers were examined) depending on the immersion time. The assembled nanoparticle films were characterized using UV-vis spectroscopy. The chemical stability of C(60)-gold nanoparticle films was studied by monitoring the changes in absorbance after the immersion of the films in acidic solutions. The ultrasonic stability of these nanoparticle films was studied by exposing them to ultrasonic irradiated surrounding, which results in the aggregation of nanoparticles on solid surfaces.     

Melt-mediated coalescence of solution-deposited ZnO nanoparticles by excimer laser annealing for thin-film transistor fabrication

Nanoparticle solutions are considered promising for realizing low cost printable high performance flexible electronics. In this letter, excimer laser annealing (ELA) was employed to induce melting of solution-deposited ZnO nanoparticles and form electrically conductive porous films. The properties of the films were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, DC conductance, and photoluminescence measurements. Thin-film field-effect transistors have been fabricated by ELA without the use of conventional vacuum or any high temperature thermal annealing processes. The transistors show n-type accumulation mode behavior with mobility greater than 0.1 cm²/V s and current on/off ratios of more than 10⁴. Optimization and control of the laser processing parameters minimized thermal impact on the substrate. This technique can be beneficial in the fabrication of metal oxide based electronics on heat sensitive flexible plastic substrates using low-cost, large-area solution processing combined with direct printing techniques.     

Nanostructures of gold coated iron core-shell nanoparticles and the nanobands assembled under magnetic field

Pure metal iron nanoparticles are unstable in the air. By a coating iron on nanoparticle surface with a stable noble metal, these air-stable nanoparticles are protected from the oxidation and retain most of the favorable magnetic properties, which possess the potential application in high density memory device by forming self-assembling nanoarrays. Gold-coated iron core-shell structure nanoparticles (Fe/Au) synthesized using reverse micelles were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The average nanoparticle size of the core-shell structure is about 8 nm, with about 6 nm diameter core and 1∼2 nm shell. Since the gold shell is not epitaxial growth related to the iron core, the morié pattern can be seen from the overlapping of iron core and gold shell. However, the gold shell lattice can be seen by changing the defocus of TEM. An energy dispersive X-ray spectrum (EDS) also shows the nanoparticles are air-stable. The magnetic measurement of the nanoparticles also proved successful synthesis of gold coated iron core-shell structure. The nanoparticles were then assembled under 0.5 T magnetic field and formed parallel nanobands with about 10 μm long. Assembling two dimensional ordered nanoarrays are still under going. Received 29 November 2000     

Inhibition effect of self-assembled films formed by gold nanoparticles on iron surface

The self-assembled (SA) films formed by gold nanoparticles on iron surface had been proved to have inhibition effect for the substrate in 0.5 M H₂SO₄ solutions. The inhibition action was investigated using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The SA films formed by gold nanoparticles protected with sodium oleate had better corrosion protection to the iron substrate than only by sodium oleate. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to observe the imagines of the SA films. In addition, it was found that the gold nanoparticles could influence the nickel electroless plating films on the iron substrate. The structure and composition of the plating films were test by electron probe microanalyzer (EPMA). The mechanisms of the formation of the SA films and the nickel electroless plating reaction were also discussed.     

Model for UV induced formation of gold nanoparticles in solid polymeric matrices

UV irradiation of polymeric PMMA films containing HAuCl₄ followed by annealing at 60-80 °C forms gold nanoparticles directly within the bulk material. The kinetics of nanoparticle formation was traced by extinction spectra of nanocomposite film changes vs annealing time. We propose that UV irradiation causes HAuCl₄ dissociation and thus provides a polymeric matrix with atomic gold. The presence of an oversaturated solid solution of atomic gold in the polymeric matrix leads to Au nanoparticle formation during annealing. This process can be understood as a phase transition of the first order. In this paper we apply several common kinetic models of the phase transition for describing Au nanoparticle formation inside the solid polymer matrix. We compare predictions of these models with the experimental data and show that these models cannot describe the process. We propose that the stabilization effect of the matrix on the growing gold nanoparticles is important. The simplest model introducing some probability for the transition from growing nanoparticle to the non-growing, stabilized form is suggested. It is shown that this model satisfactorily describes the experimentally observed evolution of the extinction spectrum of Au nanoparticles forming in a polymer matrix.     

A Correlative Analysis of Gold Nanoparticles Internalized by A549 Cells

Fluorescently labeled nanoparticles are widely used to investigate nanoparticle cell interactions by fluorescence microscopy. Owing to limited lateral and axial resolution, nanostructures (<100 nm) cannot be resolved by conventional light micro­scopy techniques. Especially after uptake into cells, a common fate of the fluorescence label and the particle core cannot be taken for granted. In this study, a correlative approach is presented to image fluorescently labeled gold nanoparticles inside whole cells by correlative light and electron microscopy (CLEM). This approach allows for detection of the fluorescently labeled particle shell as well as for the gold core in one sample. In this setup, A549 cells are exposed to 8 nm Atto 647N‐labeled gold nanoparticles (3.3 × 10⁹ particles mL^?1, 0.02 μg Au mL^?1) for 5 h and are subsequently imaged by confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Eight fluorescence signals located at different intracellular positions are further analyzed by TEM. Five of the eight fluorescence spots are correlated with isolated or agglomerated gold nanoparticles. Three fluorescence signals could not be related to the presence of gold, indicating a loss of the particle shell.     

Optical properties of plasmonic silver nanoparticles exposed to organic solvents

The influence of ethanol and acetic acid on the structure and optical properties of silver granular films formed by physical vapor deposition in a high vacuum on sapphire substrates was studied via optical spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. It was found that irregularly shaped oblate silver grains transforms into almost spherical nanoparticles. Simultaneously, optical extinction spectra shift in the short wavelength range and become narrower. The same effect was observed when liquid crystal was poured on such film. It was noticed, that nanoparticle shapes change under the action of these fluids in the same way as in the process of thermal annealing. This analogy suggests that the observed effects could be explained by acceleration of atomic diffusion over the islet surfaces. It was noticed also that the resistance of thick granular films changes abruptly several minutes after pouring such film with ethanol. This jump of resistance is also very similar to the resistance jump observed previously in the case of annealing.     

Au nanoparticles in PMMA matrix: In situ synthesis and the effect of Au nanoparticles on PMMA conductivity

Thin PMMA films with and without gold nanoparticles were subjected to ±10 V d.c. and a.c. (square wave) excitations in various frequencies while recording their XPS spectra, and the resulting differences due to charging were examined. Both pure PMMA films and films containing gold nanoparticles showed charging shifts, but those of pure PMMA were more extensive than of PMMA containing gold nanoparticles, suggesting enhanced conductivity, induced by the incorporated gold nanoparticles. Non-charging behavior for these films was also observed with the increase of gold nanoparticle concentration. Gold nanoparticles were in situ synthesized and photo-patterned within the polymer films by UV irradiation.     

琼脂糖凝胶/纳米金复合结构的制备及其表面增强拉曼性质

以琼脂糖凝胶为模板,将预先制备好的胶体金颗粒负载在琼脂糖凝胶的网状结构中,制备了琼脂糖凝胶/纳米金复合膜结构,采用透射电子显微镜、扫描电子显微镜、紫外-可见-近红外光谱仪对复合膜的结构和光学性质进行了表征,实验数据表明纳米金颗粒均匀的分散在琼脂糖凝胶膜上,并且呈现出优异的光学吸收特性。基于琼脂糖凝胶的溶胀收缩特性和纳米金颗粒可调的表面等离子体共振吸收特性,将琼脂糖凝胶/纳米金复合膜作为表面增强拉曼(SERS)基底材料,研究了其对拉曼信号分子尼罗蓝A(NBA)的SERS检测效果。结果表明,琼脂糖凝胶的多孔网状结构为纳米金颗粒的富集提供了良好的载体,随着琼脂糖凝胶在空气中失水收缩,纳米金颗粒间距离逐渐缩短,产生动态的热点效应,对拉曼信号分子具有良好的增强效应。     

Microstructural and magnetic properties of passivated Co nanoparticle films

Co nanoparticle films were prepared by plasma–gas-condensation-type particle beam deposition system. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy images show that the Co nanoparticles have a very narrow size distribution with an average diameter of 20 nm, and each of the Co nanoparticles is covered with an 3 nm layer of CoO. Hysteresis loops of the films after field-cooling in a 5 T magnetic field are greatly shifted, which can be attributed to the exchange bias effect caused by the interfacial exchange coupling between the CoO shell and the Co core. The zero field cooled films show several prominent properties, such as a quite large coercive field, a small remanence and their abnormal dependences on temperature. All these observations can be attributed to the existence of an exchange bias effect within each single Co nanoparticle even without a field-cooling process.     

Effect of the number of iron oxide nanoparticle layers on the magnetic properties of nanocomposite LbL assemblies

Aqueous colloidal suspension of iron oxide nanoparticles has been synthesized. Z-potential of iron oxide nanoparticles stabilized by citric acid was −35±3 mV. Iron oxide nanoparticles have been characterized by the light scattering method and transmission electron microscopy. The polyelectrolyte/iron oxide nanoparticle thin films with different numbers of iron oxide nanoparticle layers have been prepared on the surface of silicon substrates via the layer-by-layer assembly technique. The physical properties and chemical composition of nanocomposite thin films have been studied by atomic force microscopy, magnetic force microscopy, magnetization measurements, Raman spectroscopy. Using the analysis of experimental data it was established, that the magnetic properties of nanocomposite films depended on the number of iron oxide nanoparticle layers, the size of iron oxide nanoparticle aggregates, the distance between aggregates, and the chemical composition of iron oxide nanoparticles embedded into the nanocomposite films. The magnetic permeability of nanocomposite coatings has been calculated. The magnetic permeability values depend on the number of iron oxide nanoparticle layers in nanocomposite film.     

X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy of Stabilized Zirconia Films with Embedded Au Nanoparticles Formed under Irradiation with Gold Ions

Nanosized films of stabilized zirconia with Au nanoparticles formed by implanting Au ions are studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy. The effect of irradiation of films with Au ions and postimplantation annealing on the distribution of chemical elements and zirconium- containing ZrO _x compounds over the depth of the films is studied. Based on the data on the dimensional shift of the Au 4 f photoelectron line, the average value of the nanoparticle size is determined.

     

Thiol‐immobilized silver nanoparticle aggregate films for surface enhanced Raman scattering

We report a novel method for the fabrication of films of silver nanoparticle aggregates that are strongly attached to Si substrates (Thiol‐immobilized silver nanoparticle aggregates or TISNA). The attachment is achieved by chemically modifying the surface of a Si(100) surface in order to provide SH groups covalently linked to the substrate and then aggregating silver nanoparticles on these thiol covered surfaces. The transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) characterization show a high coverage with single nanoparticles or small clusters and a partial coverage with fractal aggregates that provide potential hot spots for surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS). We have confirmed the SERS activity of these films by adsorbing rhodamine 6G and recording the Raman spectra at several concentrations. By using the silver‐chloride stretching band as an internal standard, the adsorbate bands can be normalized in order to correct for the effects of focusing and aggregate size, which determine the number of SERS active sites in the focal area. This allows a quantitative use of SERS to be done. The adsorption–desorption of rhodamine 6G on TISNA films is reversible. These features make our TISNA films potential candidates for their use in chemical sensors based on the SERS effect. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Imaging {Au0-PAMAM} Gold-dendrimer Nanocomposites in Cells

Dendrimer nanocomposites (DNC) are hybrid nanoparticles formed by the dispersion and immobilization of guest atoms or small clusters in dendritic polymer matrices. They have a great potential in biomedical applications due to their controlled composition, predetermined size, shape and variable surface functionalities. In this work, d=5–25nm spherical nanoparticles composed of gold and poly(amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimers have been selected to demonstrate this nanoparticle based concept. {Au(0)_n-PAMAM} gold dendrimer nanocomposites with a well-defined size were synthesized and imaged by transmission electron microscopy both in vitro and in vivo. DNC have also the potential to be used for imaging and drug delivery vehicles either by utilizing bioactive guests or through the incorporation of radioactive isotopes, such as Au-198.     

A study of the galvanic replacement reaction at surfaces and the role of lateral charge propagation

The galvanic replacement of isolated nanostructures of copper and silver on conducting supports as well as continuous films of copper with gold is reported. The surface morphology was characterized by scanning electron microscopy and the replacement with gold was confirmed by EDX analysis. It was found that lateral charge propagation during the replacement reaction had a significant effect in all cases. For the isolated nanostructures the deposition of gold was observed not only at the sacrificial template but also at the surrounding unmodified areas of the conducting substrate. In the case of copper films the role of lateral charge propagation was also confirmed by connecting it to an ITO electrode through an external circuit upon which gold deposition was also observed to occur. Interestingly, by inhibiting the rate of charge propagation, through the introduction of a series resistor, the morphology of gold on the copper substrate could be changed from discrete surface decoration with cube like nanoparticles to a more porous rough surface.     

Laser-induced photoprocesses in solutions and films of the CdSe/ZnS nanoparticles

The photophysical properties of solutions and films with relatively high concentrations of CdSe/ZnS nanoparticles are studied in the presence of the visible laser irradiation in a wide range of power densities. The short-wavelength wing detected in the photoluminescence spectra of the solutions of quantum dots is due to the selective laser excitation of small-size nanoparticles. A comprehensive analysis of the anti-Stokes photoluminescence of the nanoparticles in solutions and films indicates the thermal mechanism of this phenomenon. The dimensional quantization effect, narrow spectra, and a relatively high luminescence yield are retained in the films with a high nanoparticle concentration. The luminescence spectra of the films remain unchanged when the laser flux density increases to 1 × 10⁶ W/cm². The effect of the laser radiation on the nanoparticle films is studied at the flux densities exceeding the damage threshold (5 × 10⁶–1 × 10⁹ W/cm²).     

Video-frequency scanning transmission electron microscopy of moving gold nanoparticles in liquid

Immobilized gold nanoparticles were imaged in a liquid containing water and 50% glycerol with scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM). The specimen was enclosed in a liquid compartment formed by two silicon microchips with electron transparent windows. A series of images was recorded at video frequency with a spatial resolution of 1.5nm. The nanoparticles detached from their support after imaging them for several seconds at a magnification of 250,000. Their movement was found to be much different than the movement of nanoparticles moving freely in liquid as described by Brownian Motion. The direction of motion was not random-the nanoparticles moved either in a preferred direction, or radially outwards from the center of the image. The displacement of the gold nanoparticles over time was three orders of magnitude smaller than expected on the basis of Brownian Motion. This finding implies that nanoscale objects of flexible structure or freely floating, including nanoparticles and biological objects, can be imaged with nanoscale resolution, as long as they are in close proximity to a solid support structure.