Method for nanomaterial distribution within a matrix material

Abstract

A method for nanomaterial formation and distribution within a matrix material that includes: preparing a gel matrix; patterning a reactive group within the matrix material; binding a seed material to reactive group within the matrix material, the seed material selected from a first set of gold nanomaterials, silver nanomaterials, and copper nanomaterials; binding a precursor reagent selected from materials to the seed material; adding a chalcogen to form a precursor reagent chalcogenide at sites of the precursor reagent via an ion exchange; adding final compound and optionally a ligand in solution and facilitating cation exchange replacing the precursor reagent chalcogenide with the final compound to form a nanomaterial within the matrix material.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.