Hollow inorganic nanospheres and nanotubes with tunable wall thicknesses by atomic layer deposition on self-assembled polymeric templates

The construction of inorganic nanostructures with hollow interiors is demonstrated by coating self-assembled polymeric nano-objects with a thin Al2O3 layer by atomic layer deposition (ALD), followed by removal of the polymer template upon heating. The morphology of the nano-object (i.e., spherical or cylindrical) is controlled by the block lengths of the copolymer. The thickness of the Al2O3 wall is controlled by the number of ALD cycles.