Patterning Gold Nanorod Assemblies by Deep-UV Lithography

We present a new method to pattern assemblies of gold nanorods (GNRs) on substrates and a study of the near-field coupling induced by the aggregation of the nanoparticles. Combination of deep-UV lithography and controlled deposition of functionalized GNRs generates complex GNR assemblies. Near-field coupling is investigated by photoemission electron microscopy (PEEM) on single, dimer and elongated aggregates of GNRs. This comparative study exhibits different kinds of near-field coupling efficiency that occur depending of the incident light polarization, inter-particle gaps and angles between the nanorods. Hot spots of the near field are associated to the inter-particle gap regions.