Self-assembled plasmonic nonoparticle clusters: New building blocks for metamaterials and their optical properties

In this paper it is shown that nanoparticle clusters provide a simple and flexible platform for the engineering of complex resonances, including magnetic dipole and Fano-like resonances. This method can be generalized to other functional two and three-dimensional structures such as tetrahedral clusters, which support isotropic electric and magnetic resonances (6). While low cluster yields are produced in this study, there exist other established routes to high-yield clustering. The assembly of clusters from solution supports their integration into various material platforms: they can function in solution as a liquid material, or ´metafluid,´ be integrated into soft materials such as gels, or be encapsulated and dried onto surfaces of arbitrary patterning.