Hydrophobization of silver nanoparticles through surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization

This work describes the synthesis of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA)-coated Ag@SiO2 core–shell particles by conducting a Surface-Initiated Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization (SI-ATRP). Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were first prepared by the polyol synthesis and subjected to preliminary surface functionalization which includes the encapsulation in an insulating SiO2 shell by an optimized Stober method and functionalization of the shell with an ATRP initiator. The growth of an organic PMMA shell yields inorganic/organic core–shell particles with an enhanced dispersibility in non-polar solvents.