One-Step Solution Synthesis of Ag-Cu Nanoalloys

Ag-Cu nanoalloy has been synthesized directly in solution. The composition, morphology and structure of the Ag-Cu nanoalloys were characterized by XRD, TEM, EDS and SEM. The morphology of Ag-Cu nanoalloys appears small, uniform, and spherical. The size distribution mainly focuses on 80nm~90nm. An average composition is Ag_48.9Cu_51.1, which is within experimental error of the nominal 1:1 stoichiometry and also within the thermodynamic stability window. The optical absorption spectrum of Ag-Cu nanoalloys shows the surface plasmon resonance peak position in 539.5 nm, which lies in between that of pure Ag and Cu nanoparticles about 400 and 560 nm respectively, further confirming the formation of Ag-Cu nanoalloys.