Symmetry breaking polymerization: one-pot synthesis of plasmonic hybrid Janus nanoparticles

Asymmetric hybrid nanoparticles have many important applications in catalysis, nanomotion, sensing, and diagnosis, however ways to generate the asymmetric hybrid nanoparticles are quite limited and inefficient. Most current methods rely on interfacial adhesion and modification of already formed particles. In this article we report a one-pot, facile and scalable synthesis of anisotropic Au-polymer hybrid nanoparticles via interfacial oxidative dispersion polymerization. The interfacial nucleation and polymerization lead to spontaneous symmetry breaking and formation of the Janus particles. The reaction is initiated by monomer radicals generated by the strong oxidant HAuCl4, which is itself later reduced by the electron-rich monomers to self-nucleate and form Au nanoparticles (NPs). The competition between divinylbenzene adsorption and the PVP capping agent results in effective partial surface wetting, forming asymmetric Au-PDVB hybrid nanoparticles, by confining growth of each material to its own phase. Such spontaneous symmetry breaking, important in morphogenesis, with control over the subsequent growth processes should lead to significant advances in the synthesis of asymmetric nanostructures.