Silica shell coatings, which constitute important technology for nanoparticle (NP) developments, are utilized in many applications. The silica shell's thickness greatly affects distance-dependent optical properties, such as metal-enhanced fluorescence (MEF) and fluorescence quenching in plasmonic nanocomposites. However, the precise control of silica-shell thicknesses has been mainly conducted on single metal NPs, and rarely on complex nanocomposites. In this study, silica shell-coated Ag nanoparticle-assembled silica nanoparticles (SiO2@Ag@SiO2), with finely controlled silica shell thicknesses (4 nm to 38 nm), were prepared, and quantum dots (QDs) were introduced onto SiO2@Ag@SiO2. The dominant effect between plasmonic quenching and MEF was defined depending on the thickness of the silica shell between Ag and QDs. When the distance between Ag NPs to QDs was less than ~10 nm, SiO2@Ag@SiO2@QDs showed weaker fluorescence intensities than SiO2@QD (without metal) due to the quenching effect. On the other hand, when the distance between Ag NPs to QDs was from 10 nm to 14 nm, the fluorescence intensity of SiO2@Ag@SiO2@QD was stronger than SiO2@QDs due to MEF. The results provide background knowledge for controlling the thickness of silica shells in metal-containing nanocomposites and facilitate the development of potential applications utilizing the optimal plasmonic phenomenon.
Keywords: MEF; assembled structures; fine control; fluorescence; shell thickness; silica shell.