Related Experiment Video
Updated: Nov 16, 2025
09:17
Assembly of Gold Nanorods into Chiral Plasmonic Metamolecules Using DNA Origami Templates
Published on: March 5, 2019
8.9K
Enhanced optical asymmetry in supramolecular chiroplasmonic assemblies with long-range order
Jun Lu1,2,3, Yao Xue1, Kalil Bernardino4
1State Key Laboratory of Supramolecular Structure and Materials, College of Chemistry, Jilin University, Changchun, China.
Science (New York, N.Y.)
|February 26, 2021
Summary
Researchers developed chiral assemblies of gold nanorods and amyloid polypeptides, achieving over 4600x greater optical asymmetry. This breakthrough enables advanced drug screening in biological settings.
Area of Science:
- Nanotechnology
- Biophysics
- Materials Science
Background:
- Chiral assemblies of plasmonic nanoparticles exhibit strong circular dichroism but limited optical asymmetry.
- Scattering and unfavorable field component combinations hinder optical asymmetry in current nanoparticle assemblies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To overcome limitations in optical asymmetry for chiral plasmonic nanoparticle assemblies.
- To explore long-range organization of nanoparticles for enhanced optical properties.
Main Methods:
- Helical assemblies of gold nanorods with human islet amyloid polypeptides were created.
- Liquid crystal-like organization principles were applied to nanoparticle assembly.
- Optical properties, including spectral shifts and scattering, were analyzed.
Main Results:
- Optical asymmetry g-factors increased by over 4600 times.
- Strong, polarization-dependent spectral shifts were observed.
- Reduced scattering in assembled helices contributed to enhanced asymmetry.
Conclusions:
- Long-range nanoparticle organization, mimicking liquid crystals, significantly boosts optical asymmetry.
- The developed helical assemblies enable drug screening in complex biological media.
- Findings provide structural guidance for designing materials with high optical asymmetry.
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