Sculpturing metal nanoparticles by controlled massive deformation

Controlling the shape and orientation of metal nanoparticles constitutes fundamental strategies employed to tune their distinctive properties. However, singular high-energy surfaces are notably missing from nanoparticles fabricated using existing synthesis techniques. In this work, we fabricated supported (111)-oriented Pt nanoparticles that expose low-energy surfaces and subsequently reshaped them using a metal forming technique. We found that the orientations of deformed particles span a continuum encompassing (111), (110) and (112) and observed a linear dependence of this re-orientation on the plastic strain. We proposed a model describing particle rotation during deformation in terms of synergistic interplay between slip and diffusion.