Highly fluorescent silver nanofluids with ferroelectric molecules

Abstract

Highly fluorescent silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs), soluble in a ferroelectric host of polymer molecules such as poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVF2), have been created in the form of nanofluids. The content of Ag-NPs (flocculates) is varied in steps 0.1–0.2 wt% up to a value of 5.0 wt% in tailoring a broad green emission band over 520–620 nm out of a hybrid percolation Ag–PVF2 composite. A maximum intensity arises in this band at as small a percolation threshold as ∼0.1 wt% Ag-NPs. It contains three distinct bands of peak values 541, 565, and 582 nm in an Ag-NPs tunable response of the localized surface plasmons. The emission-dependent anti-Stokes excitation spectrum contains a similar group of three bands 348, 401, and 421 nm. For Ag-contents above 0.1 wt%, interdependent intensities in the emission and excitation bands drop rapidly by as much as five times, conferring a metal–polymer percolation network. The results open wide applications for biological labels and light emitters using such nanofluids.