The objective of this study is to examine core-shell type plasmonic metamaterials aimed at the development of materials with unique electromagnetic properties. The building blocks of metamaterials under study consist of gold as a metal component, and silica and precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC) as the dielectric media. The results of this study demonstrate important applications of the core-shells including scattering suppression, airborne obscurants made of fractal gold shells, photomodification of the fractal structure providing windows of transparency, and plasmonics core-shell with a gain shell as an active device. Plasmonic resonances of the metallic shells depend on their nanostructure and geometry of the core, which can be optimized for the broadband extinction. Significant extinction from the visible to mid-infrared makes fractal shells very attractive as bandpass filters and aerosolized obscurants. In contrast to the planar fractal films, where the absorption and reflection equally contribute to the extinction, the shells' extinction is caused mainly by the absorption. This work shows that the Mie scattering resonance of a silica core with 780 nm diameter at 560 nm is suppressed by 75% and only partially substituted by the absorption in the shell so that the total transmission is noticeably increased. Effective medium theory supports our experiments and indicates that light goes mostly through the epsilon-near-zero shell with approximately wavelength independent absorption rate. Broadband extinction in fractal shells allows as well for a laser photoburning of holes in the extinction spectra and consequently windows of transparency in a controlled manner. Au fractal nanostructures grown on PCC flakes provide the highest mass normalized extinction, up to 3 m^2/g, which has been demonstrated in the broad spectral range. In the nanoplasmonic field active devices consist of a Au nanoparticle that acts as a cavity and the dye molecules attached to it via thin silica shell as the active medium. Such kind of devices is considered as a nano-laser or nano-amplifier. The fabricated nanolasers were studied for their photoluminescence kinetic properties. It is shown that the cooperative effects due to the coupling of dye molecules via Au nanoparticle plasmons result in bi-exponential emission decay characteristics in accord with theory predictions. These bi-exponential decays involve a fast superradiant decay, which is followed by a slow subradiant decay. To summarize, this work shows new attractive properties of core-shell nanoparticles. Fractal Au shells on silica cores prove to be a good scattering suppressor and a band pass filter in a broadband spectral range. They can also be used as an obscurant when PCC is used as the core material. Finally, gold nanoparticles coated with silica with dye results in bi-exponential decays.

Ziel dieser Doktorarbeit war es, den Einfluss von verschiedenen Parametern auf die spektroskopischen Eigenschaften von Lanthanid-basierten Aufkonversions-Materialien zu erforschen. Ein besonderer Fokus lag dabei auf hexagonalen Natrium-Yttrium-Tetrafluorid Kristallen, die mit dreifachgeladenen Yb und Er oder Tm Ionen kodotiert wurden. Eine wesentliche Voraussetzung für mögliche Anwendungen dieser Kristalle ist ein Verständnis aller ihrer wichtigen photophysikalischen Besonderheiten. Die erste Studie dieser Doktorarbeit untersuchte daher, wieso Nanokristalle viel weniger absorbierte in ausgesendete Photonen umwandeln als mikrokristalline Teilchen. Die Ergebnisse zeigten, dass man ungeschalte Kristalle aufgrund von Oberflächen-Lösch-Effekten in zwei Teile unterteilen kann, einen strahlenden Kern und eine Schale aus stark oder vollständig gelöschten oberflächennahen Lanthanid-Ionen, welche für Kristalle abnehmender Größe einen immer größeren Volumenanteil einnimmt. Die zweite Studie untersuchte exemplarisch, ob eine kompliziertere Partikelarchitektur, bestehend aus einem einfach-dotierten Er Kern und Yb als Schalenmaterial, diesen Effizienzverlust der Lumineszenz reduzieren kann. Die Ergebnisse zeigten jedoch, dass dies nicht der Fall ist. Eine weitere Studie untersuchte den Einfluss der Konzentration der Tm Ionen in Yb, Tm kodotierten Nanokristallen auf die spektroskopischen Eigenschaften dieser Materialien und zeigte, dass für eine maximale Emission im Lichtwellenbereich über 700 nm andere Tm Konzentrationen benötigt werden als für maximale Lichtemissionen in den unteren Lichtwellenbereichen. Die letzte Studie untersuchte den Einfluss eines zuvor berichteten Zersetzungsprozesses von exemplarisch ausgewählten Yb, Tm kodotierte Nanokristallen in wässrigen Dispersionen auf deren spektroskopische Eigenschaften. Mithilfe dieser Ergebnisse war es möglich, mehrere Emissionsbanden als Parameter für das Langzeit-Stabilitäts-Monitoring dieser Materialien zu identifizieren. / This PhD thesis investigated the influence of various parameters on the spectroscopic properties of so-called upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs). A special emphasis was dedicated to hexagonal-phase sodium yttrium tetrafluoride crystals that were codoped with trivalent Yb and either Er or Tm ions. Such UCNPs can, however, experience no breakthrough in the field of UC nanotechnology before all of their important photophysical features are understood. The first study of this PhD thesis therefore investigated, why nanocrystalline upconverters with different surface chemistries convert less absorbed to emitted photons than their microcrystalline counterparts. The results revealed that upconverting crystals apparently have to be subdivided into two parts, with one being the luminescent core and the other being a completely dark shell that is quenched by surface effects and assumes an ever increasing volumetric content for small UCNPs. The second study exemplarily investigated, if a more complex particle nanostructure that consisted of a Er doped core, surrounded by a Yb doped shell, could overcome these efficiency losses, however, it concluded that it does not. Another study explored the influence of Tm doping concentrations of Yb, Tm codoped nanocrystals on their spectroscopic properties and concluded that different Tm doping concentrations are required for a maximum upconversion luminescence in the wavelength regions above 700 nm, than for the wavelength regions below that. The last study of this PhD thesis investigated the influence of a previously reported dissolution process of UCNPs in aqueous solutions on the spectroscopic properties of exemplarily chosen Yb, Tm codoped nanocrystals. These results were then utilized to identify several upconversion emission bands that can be used as a screening parameter for the long-term stability monitoring of UCNPs.

Title: Multicomponent plasma polymers with spatially controlled properties Author: MSc. Pavel Pleskunov Department / Institute: Department of Macromolecular Physics/Charles University Supervisor of the doctoral thesis: Prof. Ing. Andrey Shukurov, PhD, Department of Macromolecular Physics / Charles University Abstract: Mixing of two (or more) polymers often leads to phase separation and to the formation of nanoscale architecture, which can be highly attractive in various applications including controllable drug delivery, fabrication of separation and solid electrolyte membranes, gas storage, etc. Different wet-chemistry techniques already exist to produce nanophase-separated polymers; however, capturing the resultant polymeric structure in a predictable manner remains a challenging task. In this thesis, a low-temperature plasma-based strategy is investigated for the production of multicomponent thin films of plasma polymers with spatially discriminated nanoscale domains. Gas aggregation cluster source is used for the fabrication of nanoparticles of plasma polymerized acrylic acid, whereas Plasma-Assisted Vapor Phase Deposition is used for the deposition of thin films of poly(ethylene oxide) plasma polymer. Embedding of nanoparticles into matrices of thermodynamically incompatible plasma polymer as well as...

Hybrid materials consisting of three different components were synthesized by the polymerization of one heterotrifunctional monomer in just one reaction step using, at the most, one catalyst. The polymerization of 2-furfuyloxy-2-methyl-4H-1,3,2-benzodioxasiline leading to a hybrid material consisting of phenolic resin, poly(furfuryl alcohol), and polymethylsilsesquioxane is, to the best of our knowledge, the first polymerization of this kind. The influence of different catalysts on the polymerization behavior and thus on the structure of the hybrid material was investigated. In accordance with the term “twin polymerization”, which is used for the polymerization of one monomer yielding two separate polymers, this type of polymerization could be called “triple polymerization”. The term “multiple polymerization” is introduced as a general term for the underlying concept of the synthesis of multiple polymers starting from one monomer in one process step. / Dieser Beitrag ist aufgrund einer (DFG-geförderten) Allianz- bzw. Nationallizenz frei zugänglich.

<p>Impressive examples of the generation of hierarchically-patterned, three-dimensional (3-D) structures for the control of light can be found throughout nature. <i>Morpho rhetenor</i> butterflies, for example, possess scales with periodic parallel ridges, each of which consists of a stack of thin (nanoscale) layers (lamellae). The bright blue color of <i>Morpho</i> butterflies has been attributed to controlled scattering of the incident light by the lamellae of the wing scales. Another stunning example is the frustule (microshell) of the <i>Coscinodiscus wailesii</i> diatom, which is capable of focusing red light without possessing a traditional lens morphology. The photonic structures and the optical behaviors of <i>Morpho</i> butterflies and <i>Coscinodiscus wailesii</i> diatoms have been extensively studied. However, no work has been conducted to shift such light manipulation from the visible to the infrared (IR) range via shape-preserving conversion of such biogenic structures. Controlling IR radiation (i.e., heat) utilizing biogenic or biomimetic structures can be of significant utility for the development of energy-harvesting devices. In order to enhance the optical interaction in the IR range, inorganic replicas of biogenic structures comprised of high-refractive-index materials have been generated in this work. Such replicas of <i>Morpho</i> <i>rhetenor</i> scales were fabricated via a combination of sol-gel solution coating, organic pyrolysis, and gas/solid reaction methods. Diatomimetic structures have also been generated via sol-gel coating, gas/solid reaction, and then patterning of pore arrays using focused ion beam (FIB) milling.</p> Throughout the sol-gel solution coating and chemical conversion steps of the processes developed in this study, attention was paid to preserve the starting shapes of the nanopatterned, microscale biogenic or biomimetic structures. Factors affecting such shape preservation included the thicknesses and uniformities of coatings applied to the biogenic or biomimetic templates, nano/microstructural evolution during thermal treatment, and reaction-induced volume changes. A conformal surface sol-gel (SSG) coating process was developed in this work to generate oxide replicas of <i>Morpho rhetenor</i> butterfly scales with precisely-controlled coating thicknesses. The adsorption kinetics and relevant adsorption isotherm of the SSG process were investigated utilizing a quartz crystal microbalance. Analyses of thermodynamic driving forces, rate-limiting kinetic steps, and volume changes associated with various chemical reactions were used to tailor processing parameters for optimized shape preservation.

Amino-functionalized organic–inorganic hybrid materials with a narrow distributed nanostructure of 2–4 nm in size were obtained by means of a template-free and non-aqueous procedure. Simultaneous twin polymerization of novel amino group containing twin monomers with 2,2′-spirobi[4H-1,3,2-benzodioxasiline] has been applied for this purpose. The amino groups of the organic–inorganic hybrid material are useful for post derivatization. / Dieser Beitrag ist aufgrund einer (DFG-geförderten) Allianz- bzw. Nationallizenz frei zugänglich.

<p dir="ltr">Metamaterials are artificially engineered nanoscale systems with a three-dimensional repetitive arrangement of certain components, and present exceptional optical properties for applications in nanophotonics, solar cells, plasmonic devices, and more. Self-assembled oxide-metal vertically aligned nanocomposites (VANs), with metallic phase as nanopillars embedded in the matrix oxide, have been recently proposed as a promising candidate for metamaterial applications. However, precise microstructural control and the structure-property relationships in VANs are still in high demand. Thus, by employing multiple approaches for structural design, this dissertation attempts to investigate the mechanisms of nanostructure evolutions and the corresponding optical responses.</p><p dir="ltr">In this dissertation, the precise control over the nanostructures has been demonstrated through morphology tuning, nanopillar orderings, and strain engineering. Firstly, Au, a well-known plasmonic mediator, has been selected as the metallic phase that forms nanopillars. Based on the previously proposed strain compensation model which describes the basic formation mechanism of VAN morphology, two oxides were then considered: La_0.7Sr_0.3MnO₃(LSMO) and CeO₂. In the first two chapters of this dissertation, LSMO was considered due to its similar lattice (a_LSMO= 3.87 Å, a_Au= 4.08 Å) and its enormous potential in nanoelectronics and spintronics. Deposited on SrTiO₃ (001) substrate through pulsed laser deposition (PLD), LSMO-Au nanocomposites exhibit ideal VAN morphology as well as promising hyperbolic dispersions in response to the incident illuminations. By substrate surface treatment of annealing at 1000°C, and variation of STO substate orientations from (001), to (111) and (110), the improved and tunable in-plan orderings of Au nanopillars have been successfully achieved. In the third chapter, a new oxide-metal VAN system of <a href="" target="_blank">CeO₂</a>-Au (a_CeO2= 5.411 Å, and a_CeO2/= 3.83 Å) has been deposited. The intriguing 45° rotated in-plan epitaxy presents an unexpected update to the strain compensation model, and tuning of Au morphology from nanopillars, nanoantennas, to nanoparticles also shows an effective modulation of the LSPR responses. COMSOL simulations have been exploited to reveal the relationships between Au morphologies and optical responses. In the last chapter, the two VAN systems of LSMO-Au and CeO₂-Au have been combined to form a complex layered VAN thin film. Investigations into the strain states, the nature of complex interfaces, and the according hybrid properties, show dramatic possibilities for further strain engineering. In summary, this dissertation has provided multiple routes for highly tailorable oxide-metal nanocomposite designs. And the two proposed material systems present great potential in optical metamaterial applications including biosensors, photovoltaics, super lenses, and more.</p>

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