Polydimethylsiloxane containing gold nanoparticles for optical applications

A hybrid material incorporating gold nanoparticles (Au-NPs) in polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) has been synthesized. Gold nanoparticles gained wide interest for their optical, chemical and physical properties, such as surface plasmon oscillations resonant absorption, chemical structure, imaging and sensing. Au-NPs can be conjugated with several functionalizing agents, such as polymeric chains, improving their properties and performances. PDMS composites with weight percentages ranging between 0.1 and 0.2% of spherical Au-NPs (10 nm diameter), were produced. In this work, we report on different dispersion effects of gold nanoparticles in PDMS. The surface morphology was investigated by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and wetting ability analyses. The presence of structures inside both virgin and hybrid PDMS containing Au-NPs was preliminary investigated by Small Angle X-ray Scattering (SAXS). The optical performance of such hybrid material was studied by UV-VIS spectroscopy, in transmission mode. An enhancement of the absorption was reported as a function of increasing percentage of gold nanoparticles and changing the nanoparticles dispersion approach. The presented hybrid material could be promising for many useful applications, such as optical waveguides, sensors and switches in optoelectronics.

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