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3D Atomic‐Scale Dynamics of Laser‐Light‐Induced Restructuring of Nanoparticles Unraveled by Electron Tomography
Author(s) -
Albrecht Wiebke,
Arslan Irmak Ece,
Altantzis Thomas,
PedrazoTardajos Adrián,
Skorikov Alexander,
Deng TianSong,
van der Hoeven Jessi E.S.,
van Blaaderen Alfons,
Van Aert Sandra,
Bals Sara
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
advanced materials
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 10.707
H-Index - 527
eISSN - 1521-4095
pISSN - 0935-9648
DOI - 10.1002/adma.202100972
Subject(s) - materials science , atomic units , nanorod , femtosecond , nanotechnology , electron tomography , nanoparticle , chemical physics , laser , atom probe , microscale chemistry , nanomaterials , laser ablation , plasmon , electron , optoelectronics , optics , scanning transmission electron microscopy , physics , mathematics education , mathematics , quantum mechanics , transmission electron microscopy
Understanding light–matter interactions in nanomaterials is crucial for optoelectronic, photonic, and plasmonic applications. Specifically, metal nanoparticles (NPs) strongly interact with light and can undergo shape transformations, fragmentation and ablation upon (pulsed) laser excitation. Despite being vital for technological applications, experimental insight into the underlying atomistic processes is still lacking due to the complexity of such measurements. Herein, atomic resolution electron tomography is performed on the same mesoporous‐silica‐coated gold nanorod, before and after femtosecond laser irradiation, to assess the missing information. Combined with molecular dynamics (MD) simulations based on the experimentally determined 3D atomic‐scale morphology, the complex atomistic rearrangements, causing shape deformations and defect generation, are unraveled. These rearrangements are simultaneously driven by surface diffusion, facet restructuring, and strain formation, and are influenced by subtleties in the atomic distribution at the surface.