Evolution of ultrafine gold seed nanoparticles with temperature and time and synthesis of plasmonic nanoshells

Abstract

Features of the evolution of ultrafine gold nanoparticles synthesized by the Duff method with temperature and time have been studied in relation to their use as seeds for the formation of plasmonic nanoshells. A quantitative relation has been revealed between the duration of preheating of such particles at a preset temperature and their size. The obtained relation indicates that Au nanoparticles grow mainly via the Ostwald ripening mechanism. Using anisotropic composite FeOOH/Ag particles as an example, it has been shown that the obtained information may be used to substantially decrease the duration of the synthesis of metal nanoshells on diverse cores.