(Invited) Silicon Nanowires/Metal Nanoparticles Composites with Specific Properties

In the past few years, there have been considerable advances in the synthesis and bio-applications of silicon nanowires (SiNWs). Because of their high surface area, electronic properties, biocompatibility, surface tailorability, multifunctionality and their compatibility with conventional silicon technology, SiNWs have been the focus of intense interest due to their potential applications in various fields including nanophotonics, biological/chemical sensors, microfluidics, and matrix-free laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry substrates. Interfacing SiNWs with living cells and bacteria have been investigated in several reports with the aim to gain a better understanding on how these nanostructured substrates influence cell functions such as cell differentiation, adhesion and spreading.

 In this presentation, I will focus on the deposition of metal nanoparticles (Ag, Au, Ni, Cu) on SiNWs and their use for various applications ranging from SERS to anti-bacterial substrates. Moreover, given the high catalytic activity of noble metal nanocatalysts owing to their relatively high chemical activity and specificity of interaction, the resulting SiNWs/metal NPs have been successfully applied for various catalytic and photocatalytic transformations. Finally, the deposition of Cu NPs on SiNWs allowed the fabrication of affinity surfaces for specific capture of His-tag peptides and their subsequent analysis by matrix-free mass spectrometry.