Preparation of fluorescent nanocomposites based on gold nanoclusters self-assembly

In this work, we report a facile strategy to fabricate fluorescent nanocomposites through the self-assembly of gold nanoclusters and polymers. The gold nanoclusters and polymers were modified with guest and host molecules, respectively. Then, the self-assembly based on the supramolecular interaction of gold nanoclusters and polymers can be conducted. Through optimizing the ratio between gold nanoclusters and polymers, we obtained novel fluorescent nanocomposites with high dispersity and uniform size in aqueous solution. Furthermore, the aggregated gold nanoclusters in the optimized nanocomposites exhibited an enhanced fluorescence. These superior properties of the fluorescent nanocomposites indicate their promising application in biological sensing and imaging.