Single-Particle Photoluminescence and Dark-Field Scattering during Charge Density Tuning

• Published in: The journal of physical chemistry letters Vol. 14; no. 2; pp. 318 - 325
• Main Authors: Searles, Emily K., Gomez, Eric, Lee, Stephen, Ostovar, Behnaz, Link, Stephan, Landes, Christy F.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Chemical Society 19-01-2023
• Subjects: Electrical properties; Electrodes; Electron density; Gold; INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY; Light; Metal Nanoparticles; Nanotubes; Physical Insights into Light Interacting with Matter; Scattering; Surface Plasmon Resonance
• ISSN: 1948-7185; 1948-7185
• DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.2c03566

Single-particle spectroelectrochemistry provides optical insight into understanding physical and chemical changes occurring on the nanoscale. While changes in dark-field scattering during electrochemical charging are well understood, changes to the photoluminescence of plasmonic nanoparticles under similar conditions are less studied. Here, we use correlated single-particle photoluminescence and dark-field scattering to compare their plasmon modulation at applied potentials. We find that changes in the emission of a single gold nanorod during charge density tuning of intraband photoluminescence can be attributed to changes in the Purcell factor and absorption cross section. Finally, modulation of interband photoluminescence provides an additional constructive observable, giving promise for establishing dual channel sensing in spectroelectrochemical measurements.