Modular Synthesis of Anisotropic, Multinary, and Heterostructured Nanoshells

Here, we report thesynthesis of multinary, heterostructured, andoctahedral nanoshells with tunable structures. The synthesis leveragesa unique combination of widely used post-synthetic modifications,including galvanic replacement, facet selective growth and etching,as well as cation exchange (CE) reactions. We start by using octahedralAu nanoparticles, converting these to PtAu nanoframes, and then depositingSe windows onto that framework. The subsequent reaction of Se withCu(+/2+) ions yields a hollow, metal-semiconductorhybrid PtAu@Cu2-x Se structure withobservable plasmonic features from the Cu2-x Se component. We then show that these Cu2-x Se domains can undergo CE and metal deposition reactionsusing Ag and Pd to yield both quinary and senary nanoshells with controlover the identity, composition, and spatial arrangement of the domains.Taken together, these experiments yield a new class of complex, hollow,metal-semiconductor hybrid particles. More broadly, these resultsdemonstrate remarkable modularity of the constituent reactions andindicate that these structures, as well as even more diverse and complexstructures, are likely accessible by retrosynthetic design.

Automated summary

In this study, multinary, heterostructured and octahedral nanoshells with adjustable structures were synthesized. The synthesis process involved widely used post-synthetic modifications including galvanic replacement, facet selective growth and etching, as well as cation exchange reactions. The resulting complex, hollow, metal-semiconductor hybrid particles demonstrated modularity of constituent reactions and potential for even more diverse and complex structures through retrosynthetic design.