Polymer nanocomposites for plasmonics: In situ synthesis of gold nanoparticles after additive manufacturing

Abstract

A series of nanocomposites containing gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) are prepared by stereolithography (SL) by simply adding a precursor (KAuCl4) to a photoresist. A thermal treatment is performed after manufacturing the nanocomposites, triggering the reduction of KAuCl4 into AuNPs in solid state. In this approach, the photopolymerization of the resin and the formation of the AuNPs occur independently, allowing the optimization of these two processes separately. Advanced electron microscopy analyses reveal the distribution, size and morphology of the AuNPs synthesized within the resin, showing the influence of the gold precursor concentration and different thermal treatments. The localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) of the AuNPs modifies the optical properties of the 3D-printed nanocomposites, yielding transparent yet colored materials even for concentrations as low as 0.1 wt% KAuCl4. This behavior can be modelled by the Mie theory, correlating the macroscopic properties of the nanocomposites with the individual AuNPs embedded in the resin. The possibility of tuning the LSPR of the AuNPs together with the ability of manufacturing 3D-structures with sub-millimeter precision by SL, paves the way for the design of advanced platforms for plasmonics, such as sensors for surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS).