Dependence of optical and microstructure properties of thiol-capped silver nanoparticles embedded in polymer matrix

Thiol-capped silver nanoparticles were prepared by in situ thermal decomposition of different silver(I)-thiolates precursors in a polymeric matrix. Depending on the structure of the organic coating, contact-free distribution of metal nanoparticles or nanoparticles aggregates were achieved. The structure and morphology of nanocomposites was analyzed by Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), and X-Ray Diffraction (XRD). Nanoparticles' interaction was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and UV-Visible spectroscopy. In particular, only silver nanoparticles coated by n-alkyl thiols aggregated, while a contact-free dispersion was obtained by cyclohexyl thiol-capped silver nanoparticles.