Control synthesis and numerical analysis of gold nanofilms after electric-field-assisted, one-step deposition

Gold nanofilms consisting of networked, cross-linked nanowires were synthesised in large quantities by the integration of electrochemical deposition and dielectrophoresis. The resultant products were characterised by scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy. On the basis of finite-element modelling of the electrode system in terms of the theory of dielectrophoresis and electromagnetism, the authors found that the growth of gold nanowires responded highly to the inhomogeneous electric fields. Also, the morphologies of the gold nanofilm evolve with the deposition time and frequency. Numerical simulations and theoretical analyses offer useful insights into the mechanism. The above study provides strong evidence that this electrochemical and template-free route is a powerful and universal technique to the synthesis for improving nanofilms performance. This strategy can be transplanted into the synthesis of other metallic nanofilms, such as silver and copper.