Gold Aerogel Monoliths with Tunable Ultralow Densities

Herein we report the fabrication of ultralight gold aerogel monoliths with tunable densities and pore structures. Gold nanowires are prepared at the gram scale by substrate-assisted growth with uniform size, ultrathin diameters, high purity, and a high aspect ratio. Freeze-casting of suspensions of these nanowires produces free-standing, monolithic aerogels with tunable densities from 6 to 23 mg/cm³, which to the best of our knowledge represents the lowest density monolithic gold material. We also demonstrate that the pore geometries created during freeze-casting can be systematically tuned across multiple length scales by the selection of different solvents and excipients in the feedstock suspension. The mechanical behavior of porous materials depends on relative density and pore architectures.