Triton X-100 for three-plasmon gold nanostars with two photothermally active NIR (near IR) and SWIR (short-wavelength IR) channelsElectronic supplementary information (ESI) available: Synthetic methods, quantitative analysis, HRTEM images, additional photothermal data. See DOI: 10.1039/c3cc42999g

Five-branched gold nanostars are obtained using Triton X-100 in a seed-growth synthesis. They have the uncommon feature of two intense localized surface plasmon resonances (LSPRs) in the 600900 and 11001600 nm ranges. Both LSPRs convert laser radiation into heat, offering two photothermally active channels in the NIR and SWIR ranges. Triton X-100 leads to formation of three-plasmon gold nanostars that are photothermally active both in the NIR and SWIR ranges.