Controlling the electrodeposition of mesoporous metals for nanoplasmonics

We have investigated the mechanism for formation of large-scale ordered structures of copper and silver by direct electrodeposition through colloidal crystal templates. It is demonstrated that the morphology is controlled by the diffusion of reactant species (metal cations and oxygen molecules) from the bulk solution to the electrode surface. The Cu system can be tuned to fill or not to fill the original drying cracks in the template in order to produce isolated or interconnected domains. This has great potential for the formation of individual or interconnected antennae in nanoplasmonic structures.