Seed-Mediated Growth of Nearly Monodisperse Palladium Nanocubes with Controllable Sizes

Abstract

Nearly monodisperse Pd nanocubes with controllable sizes were synthesized through a seed-mediated growth approach. By using Pd nanocubes of 22 nm in size as seeds, the morphology of the as-grown nanostructures was fixed as single-crystalline, which enabled us to rationally tune the size of Pd nanocubes. The formation mechanism of initial 22 nm nanocubes was also discussed. The size-dependent surface plasmon resonance properties of the as-synthesized Pd nanocubes were investigated. Compared with previous methods, the yield, monodispersity, perfection of the shape formation, and the range of size control of these nanocubes are all improved. These Pd nanocubes may have potential interests in surface-enhanced Raman scattering, sensors, catalysis, study of size-dependent properties, and fabrication of high-order structures.