2-D Polymer/Plasmonic Nanostructured Arrays and their Potential Applications

第一部分：非技术概述众所周知，任何材料的尺寸缩小到纳米级时，其性能都会发生变化。许多材料，例如金属和聚合物，现在可以开发，以便在纳米尺度上组合时产生新的性能。该项目研究了贵金属（银和金）和聚合物的组合所能获得的不同而有用的新特性，两者的尺寸都在纳米级。因此，本研究的目标是生产、研究和开发具有不同形状的纳米粒子二维组件的独特性质，这些纳米粒子包含在特殊选择的聚合物中，用于稳定和组装这些纳米粒子。这些信息将用于开发更复杂的结构，例如两种不同类型的金属纳米粒子阵列和三维聚合物/纳米粒子组合，作为未来研究计划的一部分。新的材料组合将被用于潜在的应用，如用于纳米尺度力测量的光学元件、光电开关和光机械设备。这些应用可以产生新产品，帮助技术和经济增长。银和金在纳米尺度上的等离子体特性引起了不同领域研究者的广泛关注，其应用前景令人兴奋。本研究的目标是生产、研究和利用胶体等离子体纳米粒子的二维组件的独特性质，这些组件由不同形状的聚合物组成，这些聚合物既可以作为稳定纳米粒子的配体，也可以作为组装剂。该聚合物将用于引导纳米粒子自组装成高度有序的等离子体阵列，使用快速和经济高效的Langmuir-Blodgett单层沉积。阵列的顺序以及通过在不同纳米粒子上耦合等离子体模式而产生的电子和光学性质的变化将使用不同长度、化学功能和组成的大分子进行检查。实验将辅以离散偶极子近似计算，进一步从根本上了解阵列的光学特性，以及它们与较小聚集体或单个等离子体纳米粒子的区别。该阵列还将研究其作为柔性光学偏振器和滤光器、光电开关以及用于纳米尺度力测量的光机械设备的潜在用途。

PART I: NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARYIt is well known that if the size of any material is reduced to the nanometer scale, its properties change. Many materials, e.g. metallic and polymeric, can now be developed so as to yield new properties when combined on the nanoscale. This project examines the different and useful new properties that can be obtained from a combination of precious metals (silver and gold) and polymers, both having sizes on the nanoscale. The goal of this research is thus to produce, study, and exploit the unique properties of two-dimensional assemblies of nanoparticles having different shapes included within specially-chosen polymers that serve to both stabilize and assemble these nanoparticles. This information will be used to develop more complex structures, such as arrays of two different types of metal nanoparticles and three-dimensional polymer/nanoparticle assemblies, as part of future research plans. The new combination of materials will be examined for potential applications such as optical components, opto-electronic switches and opto-mechanical devices for nanoscale force measurements. These applications could lead to new products, helping technological and economic growth.PART II: TECHNICAL SUMMARYThe plasmonic properties of silver and gold on the nanoscale have attracted the attention of many researchers in different fields for different exciting applications. The goal of this research is to produce, study, and exploit the unique properties of two-dimensional assemblies of colloidal plasmonic nanoparticles consisting of different shapes with specially-chosen polymers that serve as both stabilizing nanoparticle-capping ligands and assembling agents. The polymers will be used to direct self-assembly of the nanoparticles into highly-ordered plasmonic arrays using the rapid and cost-effective Langmuir-Blodgett monolayer deposition. The ordering of the arrays and the resulting changes in electronic and optical properties through coupling of plasmonic modes on different nanoparticles will be examined using macromolecules of different lengths, chemical functionalities, and compositions. Experiments will be complemented by calculations using the discrete dipole approximation to further fundamentally understand the optical properties of the arrays and how they differ from those of smaller aggregates or individual plasmonic nanoparticles. The arrays will also be examined for their potential use as flexible optical polarizers and filters, opto-electronic switches, and opto-mechanical devices for nanoscale force measurements.