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Updated: Feb 26, 2026

Liquid-cell Transmission Electron Microscopy for Tracking Self-assembly of Nanoparticles

Liquid-cell Transmission Electron Microscopy for Tracking Self-assembly of Nanoparticles

Published on: October 16, 2017

Detecting patchy nanoparticle assembly at the single-particle level.

S Pothorszky¹, D Zámbó¹, D Szekrényes¹

¹Institute of Technical Physics and Materials Science, HAS Centre for Energy Research, 1121 Budapest, Konkoly-Thege M. str. 29-33, Hungary. andras.deak@energia.mta.hu.

|July 14, 2017

Summary

Researchers observed how patchy colloidal particles self-assemble into heterodimers. Spheres preferentially bind to the side of gold nanorods, not the charged tips, forming stable nanoscale building blocks.

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Area of Science:

Colloid and Surface Science
Nanotechnology
Materials Science

Background:

Patchy colloidal particles enable the study of spatially inhomogeneous interactions.
Understanding self-assembly is crucial for designing nanoscale building blocks.

Purpose of the Study:

To observe the in situ formation of a heterodimer from a patchy nanorod and a sphere at the single-particle level.
To investigate the driving forces and preferred configurations of colloidal assembly.

Main Methods:

In situ single-particle experimental observation.
Utilizing gold nanorods with charged tips and PEG-grafted sides.
Analyzing optical scattering spectra for structural determination via plasmon hybridization.
Finite element simulations of electric double layer interactions.

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Last Updated: Feb 26, 2026

Liquid-cell Transmission Electron Microscopy for Tracking Self-assembly of Nanoparticles

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Plasmonic Trapping and Release of Nanoparticles in a Monitoring Environment

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Colloidal Synthesis of Nanopatch Antennas for Applications in Plasmonics and Nanophotonics

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Main Results:

Direct observation of heterodimer formation between a nanorod and a sphere.
Spheres were found to bind to the side of nanorods, not the charged tips.
This side-binding configuration was confirmed as energetically favorable through simulations.

Conclusions:

In situ single-particle experiments are effective for characterizing self-assembling structures.
The study reveals unexpected binding preferences in patchy colloidal systems.
Findings contribute to the rational design of nanoscale building blocks.