Exploiting Metallophilicity for the Assembly of Inorganic Nanocrystals and Conjugated Organic Molecules

Abstract

KEYWORDS Au NPs, luminescent hydrogel, aurophilic interactions, hydrophilic nanocomposite, surface plasmon resonance ABSTRACT. The accurate engineering of interfaces between plasmonic nanocrystals and semiconducting organic molecules is currently devised as a key for further developments in critical fields like photovoltaics and photocatalysis. In this work, a new and unconventional source of interface interaction based on metal-metal bonds is presented. With this aim, an Au(I)-organometallic gelator has been exploited for the formation of hydrogel-like nanocomposites containig noble metal nanoparticles and conjugated organic molecules. Noteworthy, the establishment of metallophilic interactions at the interface between the two moieties greatly 2 enhances the surface plasmon resonance coupling of nanoparticles in the composites. We believe that this new hybrid system might represent a promising alternative for the fabrication of improved plasmon-enhanced light harvesting devices.

The Important Role of the Nuclearity, Rigidity, and Solubility of Phosphane Ligands in the Biological Activity of Gold(I) Complexes

“…On the other hand, there has been increasing interest over the last 20 years in gold(I) organometallic complexes containing alkynyl units because of their potential applications in different fields in chemistry, such as molecular electronics, chemical sensors, materials science, supramolecular chemistry, and biological activity among others . Nevertheless, the interest in their anticancer activity has started to increase in the last years and the results are quite promising …”

Preparation and Antitumoral Activity of Au-Based Inorganic-Organometallic Nanocomposites

“…Based on all this, the combination of phosphine-Au(I)-alkynyl-based organometallic complexes and plasmonic nanoparticles seems a promising approach for the design of new theranostic agents, able to perform simultaneously diagnostic and therapeutic tasks when required during the medical treatment. Nevertheless, there are no examples reported on the synthesis of such type of nanocomposites besides our previous work (Dalmases et al, 2016), and thus their potential biological activity is yet to unravel.…”

“…Nevertheless, recent studies are focusing more into the possible synergy established between gelator molecules and different types of nanostructured materials, i.e., inorganic nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, etc (Das et al, 2012). In this regard, our group has recently reported on the synergy established between phosphine-Au(I)-alkynyl-based complexes and metallic nanoparticles, which allowed for the complete solubilization of hydrophobic colloids into water as well as for their plasmon tuning (Dalmases et al, 2016). Considering the enormous amount of highly designed systems potentially achieved, the preparation of hybrid organometallic nanocomposites should be strongly pursued, since they might open the doors for the use of a new set of engineered materials with multiple and enhanced properties useful in different fields.…”

Gold(I)‐Complex–Titania Hybrid Photocatalyst for Hydrogen Production

“…Finally, complex 2 was also impregnated over TiO 2 previously loaded with preformed Au metal nanoparticles (3 wt % Au), approximately 4 nm in diameter, to obtain the [Au(coumarin)(DAPTA)]‐Au/TiO 2 photocatalyst with aurophilic interactions between complex 2 and the Au metal nanoparticles in Au/TiO 2 …”

“…Finally,complex 2 was also impregnated over TiO 2 previously loaded with preformed Au metal nanoparticles (3 wt %A u), approximately 4nmi nd iameter, [12] to obtain the [Au(coumarin)(-DAPTA)]-Au/TiO 2 photocatalyst with aurophilic interactions between complex 2 and the Au metal nanoparticles in Au/TiO 2 . [13] The three photocatalysts were tested in the photoproduction of H 2 at room temperature under dynamic conditions from ag aseous water/ethanol mixture by using argon as the carrierg as and UV radiation[ l = (365 AE 5) nm light-emitting diodes,8 1.7 mW cm À2 measured directly on the sample].E thanol was chosen as sacrificiala gent because of its renewable character and its widespread use. Au/TiO 2 (3 wt %A u), bare TiO 2 ,a nd coumarin/TiO 2 were also tested as control experiments.…”