Know About Gold Nanowires Synthesis And Its Applications
Gold Nanowires Synthesis | Image Resource : researchgate.net
Gold nanowire is a blessing to biological and medical science with its vast number of applications. Nanotechnology makes it possible to enhance the properties of gold nanowires in an effective way. The size of each of the gold nanowires is less than 100 nanometers in diameter.
Ultrathin gold nanowires have high mechanical flexibility, transparency and high conductivity. It assembles into dense bundles which yields continuous and hierarchical superstructures. The production is commercially based providing a relatively cost-effective and scalable production.
Different Processes Involving Gold Nanowires Synthesis
Many early reported techniques resulted in the poor morphology and rough surface of gold nanowires produced by lengthy reactions for several days. Rapid and simple synthesis of single crystalline gold nanowires (AuNWs) is possible at room temperature by using oleylamine (OA). The process is less time consuming with lesser reactions. The complexes of hydrogen tetrachloroaurate (HAuCl₄) and OA could be reduced to the formation of AuNWs through aurophilic interactions. During the reaction, triisopropylsilane (TIPS) is added as a very effective reducing agent and forms a yellow solution.
The other process of gold nanowire synthesis is the reduction of HAuCl₄ by ethanol. No additional capping agents are used during the thermal process. The product obtained is investigated by Transmission Electron (TEM), UV-vis spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction (XRD). These tests are carried out to observe the shape and size variations under the different concentrations of HAuCl₄ in the reaction so that the large-scale Gold Nanowires Synthesis of Au nanowire could be performed.
Applications after the Synthesis Gold Nanowires
At Kansas State University, Manhattan the researchers have introduced a device that may benefit the patients during their electrode and organ transplant operations. The device was developed by Bret Flanders, physics professor, and Govind Paneru, research assistant in physics. The self assembled structures produced during the synthesis of gold nanowires are used as an active substrate to serve for surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS). This versatile nanowire finds use in immunogold, biosensors, as a drug delivery in therapeutics and retains electronic properties too.