Plasmonic nanogels with robustly tunable optical properties

Low viscosity fluids with tunable optical properties can be processed to manufacture thin film and interfaces for molecular detection, light trapping in photovoltaics and reconfigurable optofluidic devices. In this work, self-assembly in wormlike micelle solutions is used to uniformly distribute various metallic nanoparticles to produce stable suspensions with localized, multiple wavelength or broad-band optical properties. Their spectral response can be robustly modified by varying the species, concentration, size and/or shape of the nanoparticles. Structure, rheology and optical properties of these plasmonic nanogels as well as their potential applications to efficient photovoltaics design are discussed.

[1]  J. Hafner,et al.  Optical properties of star-shaped gold nanoparticles. , 2006, Nano letters.

[2]  R. Sureshkumar,et al.  Plasmon-enhanced microalgal growth in miniphotobioreactors , 2010 .

[3]  Christopher W. Macosko,et al.  Rheology: Principles, Measurements, and Applications , 1994 .

[4]  D. Astruc,et al.  Gold nanoparticles: assembly, supramolecular chemistry, quantum-size-related properties, and applications toward biology, catalysis, and nanotechnology. , 2004, Chemical reviews.

[5]  S. Maier,et al.  Plasmonics: Localization and guiding of electromagnetic energy in metal/dielectric structures , 2005 .

[6]  R. V. Van Duyne,et al.  Detection of a biomarker for Alzheimer's disease from synthetic and clinical samples using a nanoscale optical biosensor. , 2005, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[7]  N. Wagner,et al.  Formation and rheology of viscoelastic "double networks" in wormlike micelle-nanoparticle mixtures. , 2010, Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids.

[8]  H. Atwater,et al.  Plasmonics for improved photovoltaic devices. , 2010, Nature materials.

[9]  M. Green,et al.  Surface plasmon enhanced silicon solar cells , 2007 .

[10]  Pieter G. Kik,et al.  SURFACE PLASMON NANOPHOTONICS , 2007 .

[11]  J. Pendry,et al.  Plasmonic light-harvesting devices over the whole visible spectrum. , 2010, Nano letters.

[12]  D. Psaltis,et al.  Developing optofluidic technology through the fusion of microfluidics and optics , 2006, Nature.

[13]  P. Jain,et al.  Review of Some Interesting Surface Plasmon Resonance-enhanced Properties of Noble Metal Nanoparticles and Their Applications to Biosystems , 2007 .

[14]  J. West,et al.  Near-infrared resonant nanoshells for combined optical imaging and photothermal cancer therapy. , 2007, Nano letters.

[15]  Luke P. Lee,et al.  Nanophotonic crescent moon structures with sharp edge for ultrasensitive biomolecular detection by local electromagnetic field enhancement effect. , 2005, Nano letters.

[16]  W. Barnes,et al.  Surface plasmon subwavelength optics , 2003, Nature.

[17]  Robert W. Boyd,et al.  Optical Properties of Nanostructured Optical Materials , 1996 .

[18]  Younan Xia,et al.  Localized surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy of single silver nanocubes. , 2005, Nano letters.

[19]  H. Hoffmann,et al.  Lyotropic nematic phases of double chain surfactants , 1988 .

[20]  Seung-Man Yang,et al.  Optofluidics technology based on colloids and their assemblies , 2008 .

[21]  Adam M. Schwartzberg,et al.  Novel Optical Properties and Emerging Applications of Metal Nanostructures , 2008 .

[22]  Luke P. Lee,et al.  Optofluidic control using photothermal nanoparticles , 2006, Nature materials.

[23]  R. Sureshkumar,et al.  Structure and optical properties of self-assembled multicomponent plasmonic nanogels , 2011 .

[24]  M. Liberatore,et al.  Influence of nanoparticle addition on the properties of wormlike micellar solutions. , 2008, Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids.

[25]  Fei Le,et al.  Nanorice: a hybrid plasmonic nanostructure. , 2006, Nano letters.

[26]  C. Noguez,et al.  Influence of Morphology on the Optical Properties of Metal Nanoparticles , 2006, physics/0609015.

[27]  Zhong-Qun Tian,et al.  Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy: advancements and applications , 2005 .

[28]  P. Barber.  Absorption and scattering of light by small particles , 1984 .

[29]  J. Hafner,et al.  Localized surface plasmon resonance sensors. , 2011, Chemical reviews.

[30]  Mostafa A. El-Sayed,et al.  Evidence for Bilayer Assembly of Cationic Surfactants on the Surface of Gold Nanorods , 2001 .