Ternary asymmetric particles with controllable patchiness

This work demonstrated a facile approach to the fabrication of the ternary asymmetric silica particles that consisted of different components on the opposite poles, such as metal or fluorescent quantum dots, with the aid of the mask-unmask method and double-sided etching and modifying. By controlling the thickness of the polymer mask, the surface of the particle was precisely further controlled for functional modification. At the same time, as-prepared ternary particles could self-assemble into dimers and trimers. Asymmetric patch could be clearly distinguished by SEM, EDS mapping, TEM, and fluorescence microscopy. The asymmetric particles are stable and show the potential applications in supraparticle assembly and catalysis, etc.