DataSet: Structural and optical properties of gold nanosponges revealed via 3D nano-reconstruction and phase-field models

These are the main raw and processed data for the publication "Structural and optical properties of gold nanosponges revealed<br> via 3D nano-reconstruction and phasefield models". Abstract:<br> Nanoporous gold nanoparticles are subject of intensive research due to their unique morphology, which leads to electric field localizations generating a strongly nonlinear optical response, allowing a wide range of applications. However, accurate predictions of physical properties require detailed knowledge of the sponges’ chaotic nanometer-sized geometrical structures, posing a metrological challenge. Therefore, a main goal is to obtain computer models with equivalent structural and optical properties. To understand the sponges’ morphology, a procedure for their accurate three-dimensional reconstruction using focused ion beam tomography is presented. Next, a small number of morphological key parameters is derived that sufficiently characterize the complex topology. Additionally, a new simulation method for the computer-aided creation of finite-sized sponges with adjustable geometric properties is presented. It is shown that if certain morphological parameters are similar for computer-generated and experimental sponges, their optical response, including number and locations of field localizations, are also similar. Finally, the anisotropy of the experimental sponges is analyzed and an easy-to-use procedure to replicate arbitrary anisotropies in computer-generated sponges is presented.