Plasmon-Enhanced, Self-Traced Nanomotors on the Surface of Silicon

Light-driven nanomotors have attracted much attention due to their potential applications. The movement of conventional nanomotors typically occurs in the solution phase, which limits their application fields. Utilizing visible light to drive nanomotors at the solid–liquid interface represents a grand challenge due to the large friction force between the nanomotor and the solid surface. Based on the attractive plasmon resonance of Au nanocrystals, for the first time, plasmon-enhanced Au nanocrystal-based nanomotors moving at the silicon–aqueous solution interface have been developed. Such nanomotors move with a clear trace engraved on the Si surface, representing an excellent and exceptional self-traced nanomotor system. In addition, the nanomotor trace on the Si surface also provides a unique and promising approach to the fabrication of nanoscale Si patterns, which is central to many applications, including microelectronics, sensing, information storage, and optoelectronics.