Commercially available, citrate-stabilized gold nanoparticles are attractive engineering materials for a variety of applications given their unique and tunable properties. Their size-dependent optical properties, surface plasmon resonances, fluorescence, electrical properties and easily functionalized surface has spawned research in fields ranging from biological sensors to electronic devices.  Typically, these Au colloids are adhered to a surface using a polyelectrolyte linker.  This polyelectrolyte linker prevents direct contact of the Au nanoparticles with the underlying surface and can adversely affect the desired properties.  In our application, this polyelectrolyte linker was found to prevent an epitaxial connection between a resulting Si nanowire and the underlying Si substrate.  We examine the effects of deposition time and Au colloid size on agglomeration and nanoparticle density.  Initially, longer deposition times increases the density of Au nanoparticles on the surface; however, the density eventually plateaus.  Agglomeration too increases with deposition time and plateaus as well.  In order to increase Au nanoparticle density on the surface and minimize agglomeration, we used multiple, short-timed deposition cycles which tended to increase the density without significantly increase the agglomeration of the Au nanoparticles.

Linker-free deposition of Au nanoparticles from a Au colloid

2019 Fall National Meeting

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