Production of Palladium Nanostructures with Shape Selection by Adding Bromide

Introduction Single-crystal, one-dimensional nanostructures of palladium are attractive as interconnects for fabricating nanoscale electronic devices. Polycrystalline, mesoscopic wires made of palladium have been utilized for resistance-based detection of hydrogen gas. However, polycrystalline wires containing gaps between adjacent grains often shrink after initial exposure to hydrogen and may cause random, irreversible changes to the resistance of a sensing device. It should be possible to overcome this problem by switching to singlecrystalline Pd nanowires with better controlled characteristics. Technology description Younan Xia’s laboratory has invented a method for producing palladium nanostructures with a number of different shapes. Nanocubes, nanobars, and nanorods of palladium can all be synthesized in high yields in a mixture of ethylene glycol and water that contain sodium tetrachloropalladate, potassium bromide, and poly(vinyl pyrrolidone). The addition of potassium bromide plays a key role in controlling the shape of resultant nanostructures. In the presence of bromide, the formation of each shape to the exclusion of others is mainly determined by the ratio of ethylene glycol to water in the solvent mixture. Business Opportunity In 2004, total global nanosensor sales are estimated at $190 million and are expected to rise at an average annual growth rate of 25.5% to $592 million by 2009. The global market for nanotechnology products was estimated at nearly $9.4 billion in 2005 and over $10.5 billion in 2006, growing to about $25.2 billion by 2011. Intellectual property position There is a US patent pending on this technology. Related Publication(s)
Xiong, Y. et al, Synthesis and Mechanistic Study of Palladium Nanobars and Nanorods, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 129 (12), 3665 -3675, 2007. For more information on this technology contact:
Bolong Cao, Ph.D. Licensing Officer, Invention Licensing [email protected] 206-685-9348

Type of Offer: Licensing



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