Recent advances in the rational synthesis and self-assembly of anisotropic plasmonic nanoparticles

The field of plasmonics has grown at an incredible pace in the last couple of decades, and the synthesis and self-assembly of anisotropic plasmonic materials remains highly dynamic. The engineering of nanoparticle optical and electronic properties has resulted in important consequences for several scientific fields, including energy, medicine, biosensing, and electronics. However, the full potential of plasmonics has not yet been realized due to crucial challenges that remain in the field. In particular, the development of nanoparticles with new plasmonic properties and surface chemistries could enable the rational design of more complex architectures capable of performing advanced functions, like cascade reactions, energy conversion, or signal transduction. The scope of this short review is to highlight the most recent developments in the synthesis and self-ssembly of anisotropic metal nanoparticles, which are capable of bringing forward the next generation of plasmonic materials.