Catalysis-Driven Self-Thermophoresis of Janus Plasmonic Nanomotors

Recently, researchers in Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics developed catalysis-driven nanomotor. This work entitled “Catalysis-Driven Self-Thermophoresis of Janus Plasmonic Nanomotors” was published online in Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. (http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/anie.201609121).

It is highly demanding to design active nanomotorsthat can move in response to specific signals with controllablerate and direction. A catalysis-driven nanomotor was constructedby designing catalytically and plasmonically activeJanus gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), which generate an asymmetrictemperature gradient of local solvent surrounding NPsin catalytic reactions. The self-thermophoresis behavior of theJanus nanomotor is monitored from its inherent plasmonicresponse. The diffusion coefficient of the self-thermophoresismotion is linearly dependent on chemical reaction rate, asdescribed by a stochastic model.