Imprinted plasmonic measuring nanocylinders for nanoscale volumes of materials

Optical measurement of materials at the nanoscale is important for nanotechnology. Various plasmonic nanorulers have been studied for measuring nanoscale distance and orientation of materials, but they lack the capability to contain and measure nanoscale volumes, especially for liquid or soft materials. Here, we demonstrate the use of imprinted plasmonic volumetric nanocylinders, which act as nanoscale graduated cylinders and facilitate nanomaterial measurement via visible light. Our theoretical and experimental achievements illuminate a promising method for non-destructive, low-cost and fast measurement of material volume changes at the nanoscale, which will benefit the fields of analytical chemistry, nanofabrication and biomedical sensing.