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Comprehensive knowledge over the shape of nanomaterials is a critical factor in designing devices with desired functions. Due to this reason, systematic efforts have been made to synthesize materials of diverse shape in the nanoscale regime. Anisotropic nanomaterials are a class of materials in which their properties are direction-dependent and more than one structural parameter is needed to describe them. Their unique and fine-tuned physical and chemical properties make them ideal candidates for devising new applications. In addition, the assembly of ordered one-dimensional (1D), two-dimensional (2D), and three-dimensional (3D) arrays of anisotropic nanoparticles brings novel properties into the resulting system, which would be entirely different from the properties of individual nanoparticles. This review presents an overview of current research in the area of anisotropic nanomaterials in general and noble metal nanoparticles in particular. We begin with an introduction to the advancements in this area followed by general aspects of the growth of anisotropic nanoparticles. Then we describe several important synthetic protocols for making anisotropic nanomaterials, followed by a summary of their assemblies, and conclude with major applications.

Ultrathin (0.3-3 nm) metal dichalcogenides exhibit confinement of carriers, evolution of band-structure and photophysical properties with thickness, high on/off rectification (in MoS2, WS2, and so forth) and high thermal absorption. Here, we leverage the stable sulfur/nobel-metal binding to incorporate highly capacitive gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) onto MoS2 to raise the effective gate-voltage by an order of magnitude. Functionalization is achieved via both diffusion limited aggregation and instantaneous reaction arresting (using microwaves) with selective deposition on crystallographic edges (with 60° displacement). The electrical, thermal, and Raman studies show a highly capacitive interaction between Au NP and MoS2 flakes (CAu-MoS2 = 2.17 μF/cm(2)), a low Schottky barrier (14.52 meV), a reduced carrier-transport thermal-barrier (253 to 44.18 meV after Au NP functionalization), and increased thermal conductivity (from 15 to 23 W/mK post NP deposition). The process could be employed to attach electrodes to heterostructures of graphene and MoS2, where a gold film could be grown to act as an electron-tunneling gate-electrode connected to MoS2.

Functionalization of graphene is essential to interface it with other moieties to expand the scope of its electrical/electronic applications. However, chemical functionalization and/or molecular interactions on graphene sensitively modulate its electrical properties. To evaluate and take advantage of the properties of functionalized graphene, it is important to understand how its electrical attributes (such as carrier scattering, carrier concentration, charge polarity, quantum-capacitance enhanced doping, energy levels, transport mechanisms, and orbital hybridization of energy-bands) are influenced by a change in carbon's structural conformation, hybridization state, chemical potential, local energy levels, and dopant/interface coupling induced via functionalization or molecular interactions. Here, a detailed and integrated model describes factors influencing these electrical characteristics of functionalized graphene (covalent bonds, adsorption, π-π bonds, and lattice incorporation). The electrical properties are governed via three mechanisms: (a) conversion of carbon's hybridized state, (b) dipole interactions enhanced via quantum capacitance, and (c) orbital hybridization with an interfacing molecule. A few graphenic materials are also identified where further studies are essential to understand the effect of their functionalization.

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