Vortical superlattices in a gold nanorods' self-assembled monolayer

This paper describes the novel vortical self-assembly of CTAB-capped gold nanorods. Representative left-hand, radial, and right-hand vortices are shown. Micelles formed by CTAB molecules enhance the organized self-assembly process. The drag force of solvent flow and dynamic vortex flow in the thin solvent layer are thought to be responsible for the final vortical superlattices. FDTD simulation suggests these structures have potential applications in nanofocusing and polarized light response.