Creating metamaterial building blocks with directed photochemical metallization of silver onto DNA origami templates

Nanotechnology. 2018 Aug 31;29(35):355603. doi: 10.1088/1361-6528/aacb16. Epub 2018 Jun 7.

Abstract

DNA origami can be used to create a variety of complex and geometrically unique nanostructures that can be further modified to produce building blocks for applications such as in optical metamaterials. We describe a method for creating metal-coated nanostructures using DNA origami templates and a photochemical metallization technique. Triangular DNA origami forms were fabricated and coated with a thin metal layer by photochemical silver reduction while in solution or supported on a surface. The DNA origami template serves as a localized photosensitizer to facilitate reduction of silver ions directly from solution onto the DNA surface. The metallizing process is shown to result in a conformal metal coating, which grows in height to a self-limiting value with increasing photoreduction steps. Although this coating process results in a slight decrease in the triangle dimensions, the overall template shape is retained. Notably, this coating method exhibits characteristics of self-limiting and defect-filling growth, which results in a metal nanostructure that maps the shape of the original DNA template with a continuous and uniform metal layer and stops growing once all available DNA sites are exhausted.

MeSH terms

  • DNA / chemistry*
  • DNA / ultrastructure
  • Microscopy, Atomic Force
  • Nucleic Acid Conformation*
  • Photochemical Processes*
  • Silver / chemistry*
  • Spectrophotometry, Ultraviolet

Substances

  • Silver
  • DNA