Nanoparticle string formation on self-assembled copolymer films

Nanoparticles (NP) string formations on self-assembled copolymeric substrates has been observed. These ”thread of beads” like structures develop via simple colloidal droplet evaporation during meniscus rim withdrawal on polystyrene-block-poly(ethylene oxide) (PS-PEO) copolymer surfaces. It is shown that the process is triggered by the presence of the substrate impurities, which lead to NP aggregate formations serving as string initiation sites. The growth mechanism of these linear structures seems to be capillarity-driven. Moreover, there is an exceptional alignment coupling between NP strips and the block copolymer (BC) domains observed. BC directed NP assembly stems from a gold nanocrystal surface functionalization, which introduces selective affinity for one particular type of BC domain. The presented results reveal a potential fabrication method of NP wires characterized by remarkably low width and thickness comparable with the size of the individual constituent NP.