Plasmon induced photoluminescent emission from PED Ag-In alloy

Blending of two metals possessing localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) alters the optical behavior and aids in tuning the resonance frequency of oscillating electrons and controlling the emission. In this study, the silver solid solution with indium as solute has been synthesized using pulsed electrodeposition technique and is reported. The obtained particles retained the cubic structure on varying the precursor concentration of silver and indium in the electrolyte. The average crystallite size was estimated to be similar to 25 nm using Scherrer's formula. Parameters such as applied current density, complexing agent and increase in silver concentration all favored the alignment of particles in the form of dendrites. This LSPR in the nanoparticles is evidenced through photoluminescent emission, and fluorescence decay time is estimated to be 2 ns. The LSPR leads to the photoluminescent emission from Ag-In particles while exciting them at 300 nm. The thermal stability of the samples has been studied using TGA analysis.