Broad band tuning of the plasmonic resonance of gold nanoparticles hosted in self-organized soft materials

The extraordinary properties of reconfigurable soft materials are used to drive the resonance properties of noble metal nanoparticles, using an approach that puts a bridge between soft matter and plasmonics. Gold nanoparticles have been dissolved in a cholesteric liquid crystal and then infiltrated in a micro-periodic polymeric structure, realized by combining a holographic step and a microfluidic etching process. The spectral behavior of the nano-composite soft-structure has been investigated in the UV-Vis range for two different polarization directions of the impinging probe light. Correlation between the optical response and external perturbations (electric field, temperature variation) gives an outstanding example of broadband tuning of an "active" plasmon resonance. © 2011 The Royal Society of Chemistry.