LAUSR

Unprecedented advances in metal nanoparticle synthesis have paved the way for broad applications in sensing, imaging, catalysis, diagnosis and therapy by tuning optical properties, enhancing catalytic performance, and improving chemical and biological properties of metal nanoparticles. The central guiding concept for regulating the size and morphology of metal nanoparticles has been identified as the precise manipulation of nucleation and subsequent growth, often known as seed-mediated growth methods. However, since the growth process is sensitive not only to the metal seeds but also to capping agents, metal precursors, growth solution, growth/incubation time, reductant and other influencing factors, the precise control of metal nanoparticle morphology is multifactorial. Further, multiple reaction parameters are entangled with each other, so it is necessary to clarify the mechanism by which each factor precisely regulates the morphology of metal nanoparticles. In this review, to exploit the generality and extendibility of metal nanoparticle synthesis, we systematically summarized the mechanism of growth influencing factors in seed-mediated growth methods. Second, we focus on a variety of critical properties and applications enabled by grown metal nanoparticles. Finally, we review the current progress and offer insights on the challenges, opportunities, and future directions for the growth and applications of grown metal nanoparticles. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.