Gold nanowire synthesis by semi-immersed nanoporous anodic aluminium oxide templates in potassium dicyanoaurate-hexacyanoferrate electrolyte

Abstract

The synthesis reaction of potassium dicyanoaurate-hexacyanoferrate electrolyte and the pertinence of this electrolyte for gold nanowire synthesis are reported. Gold nanowires were synthesised in anodic aluminium oxide (AAO) nanopores using an improved design of the electrochemical cell. AAO templates with thick gold layers were placed on the surface of the electrolyte, thus the ends of the nanopores were opened, allowing the electrolyte to freely diffuse into the nanopores, extruding gases. The presented procedure simplifies the preparation before nanowire synthesis: AAO templates before synthesis do not need to degas and isolate themselves from contact with the electrolyte by a parafilm or a non-conductive adhesive. A considerably faster nanowire growth in the given conditions in the case of a semi-immersed AAO template when compared with the complete immersion method is reported. For comparison with literature data, gold nanowires were synthesised by the classical electrochemical cell using potassium dicyanoaurate-citrate electrolyte. Long, smooth and high purity nanowires were obtained using semi-immersed templates.