Abstract
A series of monolayer protected gold nanoparticle colloidal solutions have been prepared with average sizes in the 2–15nm range. If a drop of such a colloidal suspension is deposited onto a Si3N4 substrate and the solvent allowed to evaporate, the particles have a tendency to self-assemble into monolayer rafts with varying degrees of structural order depending on the initial mono-dispersity of the particles. The thermal stability of these selfassembled gold nanoparticle rafts as a function of particle size, heating method, heating rate and ligand identity have been assessed in this study. In-situ TEM studies show that sub-8nm Au nanoparticles on Si3N4 have a tendency to coarsen upon slow heating, whereas those comprised of larger particles exhibit densification. Increasing the heating rate for the smaller particles promoted densification, forcing them to form highly interconnected string-like structures. Finally, rafts of sub-4nm alkanethiol protected Au nanoparticles are shown to sinter spontaneously under ambient conditions at room temperature on the timescale of several months. This unexpected effect may have important implications for the long term structural stability of any device constructed from sub-4nm gold nanoparticles.
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Chris Kiely is Director of the Nanocharacterization Laboratory and a Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at Lehigh University, USA. His research expertise lies in the application and development of transmission electron microscopy techniques for the study of nanoscale features in materials. Particular areas of interest include catalyst materials, nanoparticle self-assembly, carbonaceous materials, and heteroepitaxial interface structures. He is also involved in microscopy technique development, and his current interests include X-Ray ultra-Microscopy (XuM) and aberration corrected Analytical Electron Microscopy (AEM).
Mathias Brust is a Professor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Liverpool, UK. He has worked with gold nanoparticles for over 15 years, and his most important contributions to the field relate to particles’ synthesis and functionalization, and to nanostructure self-assembly. His current interests include the design and preparation of nanoparticle bioconjugates for diagnostics, controlled delivery and other purposes, for example to study and manipulate their interactions with living cells.
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Ristau, R., Tiruvalam, R., Clasen, P.L. et al. Electron microscopy studies of the thermal stability of gold nanoparticle arrays. Gold Bull 42, 133–143 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03214923
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03214923