A single silver (Ag) nanoparticle (NP) collision was observed and analyzed in an alkaline solution using the electrocatalytic amplification (EA) method. Previously, the observation of a single Ag NP collision was only possible through limited methods based on a self-oxidation of Ag NPs or a blocking strategy. However, it is difficult to characterize the electrocatalytic activity of Ag NPs at a single NP level using a method based on the self-oxidation of Ag NPs. When using a blocking strategy, size analysis is difficult owing to the edge effect in the current signal. The fast oxidative dissolution of Ag NPs has been a problem for observing the staircase response of a single Ag NP collision signal using the EA method. In alkaline electrolyte conditions, Ag oxides are stable, and the oxidative dissolution of Ag NPs is sluggish. Therefore, in this study, the enhanced magnitude and frequency of the current response for single Ag NP collisions were obtained using the EA method in an alkaline electrolyte solution. The peak height and frequency of single Ag NP collisions were analyzed and compared with the theoretical estimation.
Keywords: alkaline solution; electrocatalytic amplification; electrochemistry; silver (Ag); single nanoparticle; single-molecule studies.