Microwave rapid heating for the synthesis of gold nanorods

A microwave heating system with a sealed reaction chamber and a precise temperature-controlled module was employed to assess the synthesis of tetradecylammonium bromide (TOAB) cation surfactant-stabilized gold nanorods. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was employed to characterize the size and the shape of particles. It was found that both TOAB concentrations and reaction temperature programs played an important role in the formation of gold nanorods. By using higher TOAB concentration and faster rising reaction temperature, gold nanorods with higher aspect ratio could be produced. This finding demonstrated the combination of TOAB surfactant and microwave system to be a useful approach for the preparation of gold nanorods.