Gold-Based Nanoparticle Liquids for Electronic Applications

Electrically conductive, solventless nanoparticle liquids, consisting of gold nanoparticles chemically functionalized with large organic molecular groups, have been investigated for potential utility in electronic and electrical applications. These and other solventless nanoparticle liquids, including electrically nonconductive ones, have been topics of recent research directed toward understanding and exploiting their unusual properties. The most obvious unusual property is that a collection of nanoparticles of this type can flow in a liquid-like fashion, notwithstanding the absence of free solvent molecules. By modifying the attractive and repulsive forces between the nanoparticles through modifications of the surface chemistry of the organic ligands, the properties of the resulting nanoparticle liquids can be tailored for specific applications.