title: "Hot spots" growth on single nanowire controlled by electric charge.
abstract: "Hot spots" - a kind of highly active site, which are usually composed of some unique units, such as defects, interfaces, catalyst particles or special structures - can determine the performance of nanomaterials. In this paper, we study a model system, i.e. "hot spots" on a single Ag nanowire in the galvanic replacement reaction (GRR), by dark-field microscopy. The research reveals that electric charge can be released by the formation reaction of AgCl, and consequently the electrochemical potential on Ag nanowire drops. The electric charge could induce the reduction of Ag(+) to form the "hot spots" on the nanowire during the GRR. The appearance probability of "hot spots" is almost even along the Ag nanowire, while it is slightly lower near the two ends. The spatial distance between adjacent "hot spots" is also controlled by the charge, and obeys a model based on Boltzmann distribution. In addition, the distance distribution here has an advantage in electron transfer and energy saving. Therefore, it's necessary to consider the functions of electric charge during the synthesis or application of nanomaterials.
authors.affiliation: Division of Advanced Nanomaterials, Suzhou Institute of Nano-tech and Nano-bionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou 215125, China. xczhou2013@sinano.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Shaobo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Xi
authors.affiliation: Division of Advanced Nanomaterials, Suzhou Institute of Nano-tech and Nano-bionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou 215125, China. xczhou2013@sinano.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Xuehua
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Division of Advanced Nanomaterials, Suzhou Institute of Nano-tech and Nano-bionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou 215125, China. xczhou2013@sinano.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Ting
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Division of Advanced Nanomaterials, Suzhou Institute of Nano-tech and Nano-bionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou 215125, China. xczhou2013@sinano.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Lei
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Tian
authors.affiliation: Division of Advanced Nanomaterials, Suzhou Institute of Nano-tech and Nano-bionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou 215125, China. xczhou2013@sinano.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Wenhui
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Division of Advanced Nanomaterials, Suzhou Institute of Nano-tech and Nano-bionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou 215125, China. xczhou2013@sinano.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Rui
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Division of Advanced Nanomaterials, Suzhou Institute of Nano-tech and Nano-bionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou 215125, China. xczhou2013@sinano.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Weina
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Division of Advanced Nanomaterials, Suzhou Institute of Nano-tech and Nano-bionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou 215125, China. xczhou2013@sinano.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Xuetong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Division of Advanced Nanomaterials, Suzhou Institute of Nano-tech and Nano-bionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou 215125, China. xczhou2013@sinano.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Jinping
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Division of i-Lab & Key Laboratory for Nano-Bio Interface Research, Suzhou Institute of Nano-tech and Nano-bionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou 215125, China.
authors.forename: Weihai
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Ni
authors.affiliation: Division of Advanced Nanomaterials, Suzhou Institute of Nano-tech and Nano-bionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou 215125, China. xczhou2013@sinano.ac.cn and Key Laboratory of Nanodevices and Applications, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou 215125, China.
authors.forename: Xiaochun
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhou