Rapid template-assisted self-assembly: a practical route to the fast assembly of colloidal particles

Abstract Simple and quick techniques for assembling nanoparticles in topographically designed Poly(dimethylsiloxane) moulds of nanosized shapes have great potential many spectroscopic sensing tools. Close-packed particles pose rich plasmonic resonances, enabling the optical response to be tailored on both nano- macroscale. Template-assisted self-assembly (TASA) is a method that creates colloidal aggregates with controlled sizes formed by dewetting aqueous dispersions NPs across surfaces. We present rapid TASA (rTASA), modified version an overall process time under 10 min, improving speed user-friendliness. Depending array pitch distance average number per trap, transmission through template drops between 20 80%, them detected even simplest solutions. This useful as building block generate self-assembled systems exhibit exciting properties crucial areas, particularly fast test size-selective NP detection. Graphical abstract