Block copolymer directed nanoporous metal thin films.

Porous metal thin films have high potential for use in applications such as catalysis, electrical contacts, plasmonics, as well as energy storage and conversion. Structuring metal thin films on the nanoscale to generate high surface areas poses an interesting challenge as metals have high surface energy. In this communication, we demonstrate direct access to nanostructured metal nanoparticle hybrid thin films with high nanoparticle loadings through spin coating of a mixture of block copolymer and ligand stabilized platinum and palladium nanoparticles. Plasma cleaning to remove the organics results in a conductive metal thin film. We expect that the methods described here can be generalized to other metals, mixtures of metal nanoparticles, and intermetallics