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Vibrational coherence of self-organized silver nanocrystals in f.c.c. supra-crystals

Nature Materials volume 4, pages 395–398 (2005)Cite this article

Abstract

Fabrication of devices from inorganic nanocrystals normally requires that they are self-organized into ordered structures. It has now been demonstrated that nanocrystals are able to self-organize in a 'supra'-crystal with a face-centred cubic (f.c.c.) structure1,2,3. The physical properties of nanocrystals self-organized into compact arrays are quite different from those of both isolated nanocrystals and the bulk phase. The collective optical1,4 and magnetic1,5 properties of these nanocrystal assemblies are governed mainly by dipolar interactions. Here, we show that nanocrystals vibrate coherently when they are self-organized in f.c.c. supra-crystals. Hence, a phase relation exists between the vibrations of all of the nanocrystals in a supra-crystal. This vibrational coherence can be observed by a substantial change of the quadrupolar low-frequency Raman scattering peak. Although a change in electronic transport properties has previously been observed on self-organization of silver nanocrystals6, vibrational coherence represents the first intrinsic property of f.c.c. supra-crystals.

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Figure 1: Evidence for intra-nanocrystal coherence in a random assembly of silver nanocrystals.
Figure 2: Stokes–antiStokes Raman spectra of sample A (solid line) and B (dashed line).
Figure 3: Stokes–antiStokes Raman spectra of sample A (solid line) and C (dashed line).
Figure 4: Comparison of Raman scattered intensities.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratoire des Matériaux Mésoscopiques et Nanométriques, UMR CNRS 7070, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, BP 52, 4 place Jussieu, Paris, 75252 Cedex 05, France

    A. Courty & M. P. Pileni

  2. Laboratoire de Physico-Chimie des Matériaux Luminescents, UMR CNRS 5620, Université, Lyon I, 69622, Villeurbanne Cedex, France

    A. Mermet & E. Duval

  3. Laboratoire de Physique des Solides, UMR CNRS 8502, Université Paris-Sud, Bât 510, Orsay, 91405, France

    P. A. Albouy

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  1. A. Courty
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  4. E. Duval
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  5. M. P. Pileni
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Correspondence to M. P. Pileni.

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Courty, A., Mermet, A., Albouy, P. et al. Vibrational coherence of self-organized silver nanocrystals in f.c.c. supra-crystals. Nature Mater 4, 395–398 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1038/nmat1366

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