Ultrathin gold nanowires (NWs) dispersedin hexane were preparedby chemical reduction of HAuCl4in oleylamine, along withnanospheres (NSs), side products of the reaction. X-ray photoelectronspectroscopy and small-angle X-ray scattering evidenced a stabilizationof these nano-objects by oleylammonium chloride surfactants. The directedassembly of these nano-objects on surfaces was performed by atomicforce microscopy (AFM) nanoxerography in a few seconds. Selectiveassembly of gold NWs only occurred on positively charged patterns,while NSs assembled more specifically on the negatively charged ones.This sorting suggests that the strong electric field generated bythe charge patterns induced a negative effective charge on the goldNWs and a weak positive effective charge on the NSs. Such differencecould be explained by the ion organization at the colloid surface,monolayered in the case of NWs, and bilayered in the case of NSs.By adjusting the design of the positive patterns and the experimentalconditions of development, single gold nanowires were successfullyassembled by AFM nanoxerography on predefined sites of surfaces withoutdamaging them, opening the way for future electrical and mechanicalcharacterizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]