New Strategy for Creating TiO2 Thin Films with Embedded Au Nanoparticles

This paper proposes a new strategy for producing thin films of TiO2 with embedded gold nanoparticles (TiO2/AuNP). One of the main tasks was the synthesis of a stable dispersion of TiO2 and gold nanoparticles in an aqueous solution of ethylene glycol, suitable for inkjet printing-ink with complex gold nanoparticles (AuCNP ink). The AuCNP were synthesized by a reduction from tetrachloroauric acid in the presence of TiO2 nanoparticles and ethylene glycol (EG). The final formation of TiO2/AuNP films occurred during the annealing of AuCNP layers, inkjet printed on a glass substrate. The TiO2/AuNP films demonstrate absorbance in the yellow-green range due to the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) and are promising for solar cell application.