Electron Transfer in Superlattice Films based on Self-Assembled DNA-Gold Nanoparticle

Abstract The use of DNA to assembly metal nanoparticles into specific crystalline lattices is a topic of high interest in the moment. Due to the DNA self-assembly it is possible not only to control the crystal symmetry, but also control the distance between particles, rigidity, dynamics and actuation of these systems. In this way, those nanoparticles superlattices are interesting for a broad range of applications, including plasmonics, catalysis and electronics. Herein, we used DNA to self-assembly 20 nm gold nanoparticles into body centered cubic(bcc) films with two different orientations and studied the contribution of DNA to the conduction using methylene blue as electrochemical probe. Our results showed that methylene blue intercalated into the DNA double helix, and the obtained films presented high k ET values, reaching ∼230 s -1 , moreover we showed that the (110) orientation have a higher k ET compared to the (100). It indicates that not only the DNA and the nanoparticle are important for the conduction, but their organization is also crucial to understand and improve the charge conduction.