Probing Plasmon-Induced Chemical Mechanisms by Free-Radical Nanophotopolymerization

Abstract

Localized surface plasmon-induced photopolymerization of free-radical acrylate monomers is an efficient, smart, and versatile method for preparing metal/polymer hybrid nanoparticles (NPs) with accurate control of the thickness and spatial distribution of the polymer on the NP surface. Despite a growing number of practical demonstrations, the mechanism leading to polymerization of the acrylate monomer by localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) is still controversial. It could be related to either a photochemical mechanism enhanced by electromagnetic hot spots (enhanced near field) or thermoplasmonic (photothermal heating) or electrochemical (via hot-carrier injection) mechanisms, as proposed in different studies. After developing a high-resolution characterization method based on transmission electron microscopy and by tuning the photopolymer composition and the irradiation conditions, the LSPR-induced physicochemical mechanism is revealed. We demonstrate that the photochemical pathway is the main mechanism under the mild irradiation conditions chosen for this process. In a more general way, photopolymerization proves to be a powerful tool to investigate the coupling between metal nanostructures and organic moieties.