Planet–satellite nanostructures from gold nanoparticles and RAFT star polymers
Friday, August 29, 2014 - 06:30
in Physics & Chemistry
(Phys.org) —The cosmos in miniature: German researchers have produced nanoparticles surrounded by a group of smaller nanoparticles like a planet orbited by satellites. They equipped larger gold nanoparticles with special star-shaped polymers, which in turn bind to smaller gold nanoparticles. As the researchers report in the journal Angewandte Chemie, it is possible to precisely control the distance between the tiny "satellites" and their central "planet" by means of the molecular weight—and thus the chain length—of the polymers.