SCALABLE PROCESSING OF NANOCOMPOSITES USING PHOTON-BASED METHODS

摘要

Using a modified CVD infusion process and femtosecond laser irradiation, the methods of the present invention demonstrate the ability to create core-shell nanoparticles of metal and metal oxide nanoparticles embedded within the bulk of an optically transparent substrate. With the use of optical masks and multiple precursor chemicals, the inventive methods make it possible to create nanoparticles or core-shell nanoparticles with drastically different compositions in close proximity to each other. Since the mechanism for precursor decomposition is limited to the surface of the nanoparticles within the substrate, it is possible to control the chemistry, size, and shape of nanoparticles within an optically transparent substrate on a nanoscale. The present invention also provides methods of controlling diffusion of a metal or metal oxide precursor compound in a substrate by selectively irradiating the substrate with a wavelength of light which is preferentially absorbed by the substrate and not the precursor, allowing preferential diffusion of the precursor compounds in the irradiated areas.