Tip functionalization of anisotropic plasmonic nanoparticles with conductive polymer patches via site-selective micelle intercalation.

Plasmonic patchy nanoparticles (NPs), which consist of polymer domains distributed on metal NP surface, are important for photonics, electronics, and biomedicine applications. However, current synthetic strategies are largely limited to thiol-containing ligands or block copolymers. It remains a challenge to achieve the site-selective positioning of functional conductive polymer patches on a metal NP. Here, we show how micelle intercalation dictates the nucleation sites of polypyrrole (PPy) on anisotropic plasmonic NPs, including Au nanorods (NRs) and triangular nanoprisms. The site-selectivity of the PPy patches is governed by NP local curvature and sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS) concentration. Moreover, we control over the charge transfer at the PPy and Au interface through HCl doping, offering possible stimuli-responsive properties at single-NP level. Furthermore, we extend the structural complexity via seed-mediated overgrowth and self-assembly. These results establish micelle intercalation as a strategy for programming conductive polymer patches on plasmonic NPs with diverse geometries.