title: Growth mechanism deconvolution of self-limiting supraparticles based on microfluidic system.
abstract: The synthesis of colloidal supraparticles (SPs) based on self-assembly of nanoscopic objects has attracted much attention in recent years. Here, we demonstrate the formation of self-limiting monodisperse gold SPs with core-shell morphology based on the building blocks of flexible nanoarms in one step. A flow-based microfluidic chip is utilized to slow down the assembly process of the intermediates, which surprisingly allows for observation of ultrathin gold nanoplates as first intermediates. Notably, these intermediate cannot be observed in traditional synthesis due to their rapid rolling-up to form the second-order nanostructure of flexible hollow nanoarms. The growth mechanism of SPs can then be deconvoluted into two seed-mediated steps. Monte Carlo simulations confirm that the self-limiting growth of binary SPs is governed by a balance between electrostatic repulsion and van der Waals attraction.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Electroanalytical Chemistry, Jilin Province Key Laboratory of Low Carbon Chemical Power, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Science , 5625 Renmin Street, Changchun 130022, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Qiang
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Fu
authors.forename: Yuping
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sheng
authors.forename: Hongjie
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.forename: Zhening
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Mingbo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ruan
authors.forename: Weilin
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Yutian
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Zhiyong
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Tang
keywords: Au; Monte Carlo simulation; growth mechanism; microfluidics; supraparticle