Facile ambient temperature synthesis and characterization of a stable nano-sized hollow silica particles using soluble-poly(methacrylic acid) sodium salt templating

• Modified approach was developed using water based-polymer for synthesis of hollow silicate nanoparticles.
• Synthesized hollow silicate nanoparticles show stable, scalable and good surface area.
• For the first time, the steadiness in sectioning the surface shell wall of NHSPs using a scanning/transmission-helium ion beam microscope (S/THIM) was demonstrated.
• When deposited as a thin (nanolayer) film, hollow silicate nanoparticles show anti-reflection properties in the visible spectra range.

A simplified synthesis of nano-sized hollow silicate particles (NHSPs) 80–200 nm in average diameter via a soft template approach using alternative soluble-poly(methacrylic acid) sodium salt (NaPMA) is presented here. The nano-surface shell wall approximately 30-nm wall thickness is tuned using basic colloidal chemistry to control stability of the NHSPs. For the first time, the steadiness in sectioning the surface shell wall of NHSPs using a scanning/transmission-helium ion beam microscope (S/THIM) was demonstrated. This simplified that soft-template approach is simple, easily scalable and carried out at ambient temperature. When deposited as a thin (nanolayer) film, NHSPs show anti-reflection properties in the visible spectra range.