Colloidal Gold Nanoparticles Research Articles

Strategy for Patterning Single Colloidal Gold Nanoparticles on Two Photon Polymerized and Functionalized Ultrathin Nanostructures

Local and deterministic trapping of single nanoparticles (NPs) has always been a challenging topic due to the difficulties faced at such a small particle size. These difficulties are concerned with the stability, simplicity, robustness, and efficiency of the used trapping technique. Here, we used two-photon polymerization (TPP) of a prefunctionalized photopolymer to obtain a nanometric polymer layer and selectively attract single colloidal gold NPs (AuNPs). Thanks to a deep photochemical study of the threshold energy, we identified a photopolymerization regime allowing one to tune the polymer size and immobilize single gold nanoparticles. This method is promising for the fabrication of single photon sources.

Spectroscopic properties of gold nanoparticles by laser irradiation

In this work a gold nanoparticles solutions has been irradiated by laser beam.The gold nanoparticles are prepared by using potassium bitarate as a reducing agent and Polyethylene glycol as a dispersion factor. The particles size of prepared solutions between 50-100 nanometers. Colloidal gold nanoparticles are irradiate with laser diode at period 5 and 10 minutes then the comparisons between two solutions with and without irradiation was done. The results are obtained by measuring the absorbance and using a spectrophotometer for the both solutions before and after irradiation. The result shows the differences between the spectrum of nanoparticles at ordinary state and spectrum of nanoparticles irradiated with laser beam. It's clear that the resolution is increase when the time of radiation is increasing. When spectrophotometers testing are done, we can note that there are broadening in the beginning of the spectrum of nanoparticles and increasing when time of exposure of laser beam is increasing.

Development and validation of a rapid and easy-to-perform point-of-care lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA) for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 spike protein.

Development and validation of rapid and easy-to-perform diagnostics continue to be a high priority during the current COVID-19 pandemic. Although vaccines are now widely available, early detection and consistent transmission control provide ideal means to mitigate the spread of SARS-CoV-2. Nucleic acid-based real-time PCR tests are widely acknowledged as the gold standard for reliable diagnosis of COVID-19 infection. These tests are based on detecting viable or nonviable viral nucleic acids. SARS-CoV-2 spike protein is an alternative and ideal target for SARS-CoV-2 diagnosis in the early phase of infection, but point-of-care kits to detect the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein are limited. Here we describe a rapid and convenient method based on Lateral Flow Immunoassay (LFIA) to detect SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins, including SARS-CoV-2 variants (A.23.1, B.1.1.1, 1.617.2, B.1.1.7, B.1.351, P.1, N501Y, R.1, P681H, P3, UK, and South African) within 5 to 10 minutes. We generated highly specific monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) against rationally designed SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. Matched pair mAbs were selected by epitope mapping and employed as antigen capture reagents by spotting onto a nitrocellulose membrane and as detector reagents by conjugation with colloidal gold nanoparticles. We evaluated the performance of the LFIA using recombinant spike proteins of SARS-CoV-2 and several SARS-CoV-2 variants. The specificity of the LFIA was assessed using heat-inactivated SARS-CoV-2 and related human coronaviruses (HCoV-OC43, HCoV-229E, HCoV-HKU1, and HCoV-NL63) and an FDA-approved respiratory pathogens (RP) panel. The assay exhibited 98% specificity and acceptable performance with respect to the minimum limit of detection (25 ng/test) in validation tests. This new LFIA provides improved performance for the early diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2, particularly for home monitoring and in situations with limited access to molecular methods.

Generalization of Self-Assembly Toward Differently Shaped Colloidal Nanoparticles for Plasmonic Superlattices.

Periodic superlattices of noble metal nanoparticles have demonstrated superior plasmonic properties compared to randomly distributed plasmonic arrangements due to near-field coupling and constructive far-field interference. Here, a chemically driven, templated self-assembly process of colloidal gold nanoparticles is investigated and optimized, and the technology is extended toward a generalized assembly process for variously shaped particles, such as spheres, rods, and triangles. The process yields periodic superlattices of homogenous nanoparticle clusters on a centimeter scale. Electromagnetically simulated absorption spectra and corresponding experimental extinction measurements demonstrate excellent agreement in the far-field for all particle types and different lattice periods. The electromagnetic simulations reveal the specific nano-cluster near-field behavior, predicting the experimental findings provided by surface-enhanced Raman scatteringmeasurements. It turns out that periodic arrays of spherical nanoparticles produce higher surface-enhancedRamanscatteringenhancement factors than particles with less symmetry as a result of very well-defined stronghotspots.

Charge transfer effect: a new assignment of the abnormal optical absorption band of gold nanoparticles

As a significant accompanying phenomenon of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), the addition of foreign molecules to colloidal gold or silver nanoparticles results in a new abnormal optical absorption (AOA) band, which usually appears in the long-wavelength region. The assignment of this AOA band has long been debated as an important issue that is desired to be addressed in the SERS field, which is crucial for a clear understanding of the SERS enhancement mechanism and beneficial to surface plasmonics. In this study, both the calculated and measured optical absorptions of gold nanoparticle monomers and dimers as well as their interactions with adsorbed molecules, showed that the AOA band in the long-wavelength region which was assigned to the characteristic longitudinal localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) effect of gold nanoparticle chain aggregates in conventional SERS electromagnetic theory, should be attributed to the charge-transfer resonance absorption from gold nanoparticles to adsorbed molecules. This was further confirmed by the corresponding SERS effects. As the excitation wavelength at 785 nm was resonant with the broad AOA band centered at 750 nm, the SERS peaks of the adsorbed pyridine molecules could be dramatically enhanced due to the charge-transfer resonance effect. In contrast, under an excitation wavelength of 532 nm, the SERS peaks appeared very weak, although the excitation wavelength was resonant with the LSPR absorption band of the individual gold nanoparticles.

Activity and reusability of immobilized gold nanoparticles for the catalysis of both oxidation and reduction reactions

Colloidal gold nanoparticles (AuNP) are well-known to present a catalytic activity. However, they are characterized by certain limitations, as a rather poor stability and lack of both handling and reusability. Their immobilization on surfaces could help to overcome these drawbacks. This work evaluated the impact of the immobilization of AuNP towards their catalytic activity on reduction and oxidation reactions. Colloidal AuNP stabilized with citrate ions were synthesized, characterized, and immobilized by the dip-coating method, the obtained immobilized AuNP (iAuNP) were characterized. The catalytic activity of AuNP and iAuNP was evaluated and compared to each other through the p-nitrophenol reduction reaction. The kinetic of the catalytic activity of iAuNP was slower than colloidal AuNP. The catalytic activity appeared to be impacted by the less available surface of iAuNP. The reduction efficiency of iAuNP was also evaluated with the DPPH•/DPPH2 reduction reaction. The capacity of iAuNP to catalyze the reduction of DPPH• in DPPH2 was shown even after 130 days and 20 reuses of the nanostructured surface on the contrary to non-reusable colloidal AuNP. The oxidation efficiency of iAuNP was measured by the ability to catalyze the auto-oxidation of curcumin (HPLC-UV/vis). For all these experiments, the addition of 4-mercapto-phenol on the surface of iAuNP passivated the surface, decreasing the catalytic activity of the materials. In conclusion, iAuNP are redox catalysts with both anti- and pro-oxidant effects and high reusability over a very long period.

Development of a monoclonal antibody-based lateral flow immunoassay for the detection of benzoic acid in liquid food.

To monitor benzoic acid (BA) residues in liquid food samples, a monoclonal antibody (mAb)-based lateral flow immunoassay (LFA) was developed in this study. First, 2-aminobenzoic acid (2-AA), 3-aminobenzoic acid (3-AA), and 4-aminobenzoic acid (4-AA) were conjugated to BSA and used as immunogens. After cell fusion, mAb 6D8 from 4-AA-BSA performed best with an IC50 value of 0.21 mg L-1 using 3-AA-OVA as a heterogeneous antigen, which represented a 3.4-fold improvement compared with the homogeneous antigen 4-AA-BSA. Subsequently, eight kinds of CGNPs with sizes varying from 20.94 nm to 90.00 nm were synthesized for screening the suitable size to develop a sensitive LFA. Finally, a sensitive LFA based on colloidal gold (23.27 nm) nanoparticles was developed for screening BA with a cut-off value of 4 mg L-1, which could meet the requirement of BA detection in milk, Fanta, Sprite, Coca-Cola, and Smart samples.

Embedding plasmonic gold nanoparticles in a ZnO layer enhanced the performance of inverted organic solar cells based on an indacenodithieno[3,2-b]thiophene-alt-5,5'-di(thiophen-2-yl)-2,2'-bithiazole-based push-pull polymer.

Recently, plasmonic nanoparticles (NPs) have attracted considerable attention as good candidates for enhancing the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of organic solar cells (OSCs) owing to their localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR). In this study, the effect of embedding colloidal gold nanoparticles (cAu NPs) in the ZnO electron transport layer (ETL) on the PCEs of wide band gap polymer-based inverted OSCs was investigated. The active layer was composed of a bulk heterojunction of conjugated polymer based on indacenodithieno[3,2-b]thiophene and 5,5'-di(thiophen-2-yl)-2,2'-bithiazole PIDTT-DTBTz as a donor and [6,6]-phenyl-C71-butyric acid methyl ester (PC71BM) as an acceptor. The PCE of the reference device was improved by 22% when 10 wt% cAu NPs were embedded in the ZnO ETL. The short circuit current density (JSC) and fill factor (FF) were the main photovoltaic parameters contributing to the PCE enhancement. An improved absorption in the active layer due to the LSPR of cAu NPs as well as efficient exciton dissociation and charge collection were found to be the reasons for the enhanced JSC while the increase in FF was mainly due to the suppressed traps and improved conductivity of the ZnO layer by the NPs.

Theoretical predictions and experimental verifications of SERS detection in colorants.

Synthetic colorants added during food processing not only fail to provide nutrients, but also can be harmful to human health when used in excess. To establish a simple, convenient, rapid and low-cost surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) detection method for colorants, an active surface-enhanced substrate of colloidal gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) was prepared in this study. The density functional theory (DFT) method of B3LYP with 6-31G(d) was applied to determine the theoretical Raman spectra of erythrosine, basic orange 2, 21 and 22, and to attribute their characteristic spectral peaks. The SERS spectra of the four colorants were pre-processed using local least squares (LLS) and morphological weighted penalized least squares (MWPLS), and multiple linear regression (MLR) models were established to quantify the four colorants in beverages. The results showed that the prepared AuNPs with a particle size of about 50 nm were reproducible and stable, with a good enhancement of the SERS spectrum of rhodamine 6G at 10-8 mol L-1. The theoretical Raman frequencies were in good agreement with the experimental Raman frequencies, and the peak position differences of the main characteristic peaks of the four colorants were within 20 cm-1. The MLR calibration models for the concentrations of the four colorants showed relative errors of prediction (REP) of 2.97-8.96%, root mean square errors of prediction (RMSEP) of 0.03-0.94, R2 of 0.973-0.999, and limits of detection of 0.06 μg mL-1. The present method could be used to quantify erythrosine, basic orange 2, 21, and 22, revealing its wide range of applications in food safety.

Tunable-wavelength nanosecond laser tailoring of plasmon resonance spectra of gold nanoparticle colloids.

Metal nanoparticles have applications across a range of fields of science and industry. While there are numerous existing methods to facilitate their large-scale production, most face limitations, particularly in achieving reproducible processes and minimizing undesirable impurities. Common issues are varying particle sizes and aggregates with unfavorable spectral properties. Researchers are currently developing methods to separate or modify nanoparticle sizes and shapes post-synthesis and to eliminate impurities. One promising approach involves laser light irradiation and enables the changing of nanoparticle sizes and shapes while controlling crucial spectral parameters. In this work, we present a novel extension of this method by irradiating nanoparticle colloids with variable-wavelength nanosecond laser pulses on both sides of the extinction band. Our results demonstrate the use of gradual laser wavelength tuning to optimize the photothermal reshaping of gold nanorods and achieve precise control over the plasmon resonance band. By irradiating both sides of the plasmon resonance band, we execute a multistep tuning process, controlling the band's width and spectral position. A statistical analysis of SEM images reveals differences in the nanorod morphology when irradiated on the long- or short-wavelength side of the plasmon resonance band. The fine-tuning of plasmonic spectral properties is desirable for various applications, including the development of sensors and filters and the exploitation of the photothermal effect. The findings of this study can be extended to other plasmonic nanostructures.

Interaction of Colloidal Gold Nanoparticles with Urine and Saliva Biofluids: An Exploratory Study.

The use of gold nanoparticles for drug delivery, photothermal or photodynamic therapy, and biosensing enhances the demand for knowledge about the protein corona formed on the surface of nanoparticles. In this study, gold nanospheres (AuNSs), gold nanorods (AuNRs), and gold nanoflowers (AuNFs) were incubated with saliva or urine. After the interaction, the surface of gold nanoparticles was investigated using UV-VIS spectroscopy, zeta potential, and dynamic light scattering. The shifting of the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) band, the increase in hydrodynamic diameter, and the changes in the surface charge of nanoparticles indicated the presence of biomolecules on the surface of AuNSs, AuNRs, and AuNFs. The incubation of AuNFs with saliva led to nanoparticle aggregation and minimal protein adsorption. AuNSs and AuNRs incubated in saliva were analyzed through liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) to identify the 96 proteins adsorbed on the surface of the gold nanoparticles. Among the 20 most abundant proteins identified, 14 proteins were common in both AuNSs and AuNRs. We hypothesize that the adsorption of these proteins was due to their high sulfur content, allowing for their interaction with gold nanoparticles via the Au-S bond. The presence of distinct proteins on the surface of AuNSs or AuNRs was also investigated and possibly related to the competition between proteins present on the external layers of corona and gold nanoparticle morphology.

Point of care diagnosis of dry eye disease with a sensitive immunoassay for dual biomarker detection

Dry eye disease (DED) is a multifactorial eye disease with few effective methods for clinical diagnosis and treatment. It is the most common eye disease with significant health challenges of the unprecedented aging population. Recent proteomic studies and clinical research have led to the discovery of several biologically relevant biomarkers, with increased levels of Interleukin-6 (IL-6) and decreased levels of lactoferrin being clinically validated in the progression of DED. In this study, a sensitive point of care (POC) DED diagnostic method was developed for targeting dual biomarkers of IL-6 and lactoferrin in the tear samples. A paper-based lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA) was established in a double-antibody sandwich fashion with colloid gold nanoparticles acting as probes. The minimal detection concentrations were 0.1 ng/ml and 10 ng/ml for IL-6 and lactoferrin, respectively. Separated conventional ELISA tests were also performed with data confirming results from the LFIA tests. A trial study was conducted with 20 tear samples from DED patients and healthy controls. All DED tear samples exhibited significantly higher levels of IL-6 and decreased levels of lactoferrin, as compared to the normal controls. A quantitative analysis of LFIA images was carried out using ImageJ software for an accurate data interpretation. This dual biomarker detection method is sensitive and affordable with quick turnaround time. Design of a larger clinical study in the future can further validate this POC assay for early diagnosis as well as patients’ self-management of chronic states of DED.

A Colorimetric Detection of Noradrenaline in Wastewater Using Citrate-Capped Colloidal Gold Nanoparticles Probe

This study reports a simple, fast, and low-cost detection of noradrenaline (NA) in wastewater using citrate-capped colloidal gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). The addition of NA to citrate-capped colloidal AuNPs generates a colour modulation that the bare eye can detect due to the aggregation of the colloidal AuNPs. The relationship between the NA concentration and colloidal AuNPs aggregation was further monitored by ultraviolet–visible light (UV–vis) spectroscopy in an aqueous solution. The method displayed a linear range of 0–500 μM with R2 = 0.99 and an LOD and LOQ of 42.2 and 140.5 μM. Application in an environmental sample collected from the Darville Wastewater Treatment Plant shows that this work provided a cost-effective and spectrophotometric method that could be used for monitoring contamination in wastewater.

Optimization of Colloidal Gold Nanoparticles on Porous Anodic Aluminum Oxide Substrates for Refractometric Sensing.

A new composite metal-insulator-metal (MIM) system consisting of exceptionally dense non-close-packed (NCP) arrays of gold or silver nanoparticles, porous anodic aluminum oxide (PAAO), and bulk aluminum substrate interacts strongly with visible light and may become a very useful component for optical applications. The proposed MIM structure can be synthesized using accessible lithography-free chemical and physical processes (anodization and capillary force assisted colloidal particle deposition) that are suitable for the low-cost production of specialized devices. Here, we present a systematic study to determine the essential MIM structure parameters (nanoparticle size and PAAO layer thickness) for localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) refractometric sensing. A performance comparison was done by recording the spectra of scattered light upon angled illumination in media with different refractive indices. A clear advantage for maximizing the signal to background ratio was observed in the case of 60 and 80 nm Au nanoparticles with a PAAO thickness in a narrow range between 300 and 375 nm. Sensitivity exceeding a 200 nm peak wavelength shift per refractive index unit was found for 60 nm Au nanoparticles on approximately 500-nm-thick PAAO. The experimental observations were supported by finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulations.

SERS detection of thiram using polyacrylamide hydrogel-enclosed gold nanoparticle aggregates

The development of sensitive and long-term signal-stable plasmonic substrates is vital to the in-field application of the surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) technique. The colloidal gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) system is commonly used in SERS detection, but it shows less signal stability and reproducibility due to the uncontrollable aggregation of nanoparticles by adding aggregating agents in SERS detection. In this study, we developed a new SERS detection platform based on polyacrylamide hydrogel-enclosed plasmonic gold nanoparticle aggregates (PAH-AuANs). In the system, the formation of PAH can rapidly stabilize the gold nanoparticle aggregates, avoiding the over-aggregation or precipitation of AuNPs. With the PAH concentration in the range of 6–10 % and AuNPs at the concentration of 0.2 nM, the resulting PAH-AuNAs platform exhibited both sensitive SERS activity and excellent SERS signal stability. The relative standard deviation of the 4-MBA probe SERS signal collected from the PAH-AuNAs platform was lower than 3 %. The limit of detection for the pesticide thiram was down to 0.38 μg/L with a handheld Raman spectrometer. Moreover, the procedure for preparing the PAH-AuNAs platform was easy to handle, offering a new strategy for in-field detection of environmental contaminants with a handheld Raman spectrometer in the future.

Development of sensitive and portable immunosensors based on signal amplification probes for monitoring the mercury(II) ions

Mercury ion (Hg2+) as a major environmental pollutant threatens human health even at very low concentrations, so it is essential to monitor mercury residues in food. In this study, Hg2+ was conjugated with protein carrier using 1-(4-Isothiocyanobenzyl) ethylenediamine N, N, N′, N′-tetraacetic acid (ITCBE) as a bifunctional chelator. 7A1 monoclonal antibody (mAb) against Hg2+-ITCBE with high affinity (7.3 × 109 L/moL) and good specificity was obtained by cell fusion technology and performed to establish immunosensors. Immunochromatographic test strip using colloidal gold nanoparticles (AuNP with an average diameter of 18 nm) as signal reporter showed low sensitivity. Signal amplification probes including larger multi-branched gold nanoflowers (AuNF) and latex microspheres (LM) were employed to enhance the sensitivity of immunosensors. The visible limit of detection (vLOD) of the AuNF- and LM-based strip were determined to be 50 ng/mL and 25 ng/mL respectively, showing more sensitive than that of AuNP-based strip (200 ng/mL). Quantitative analysis showed that AuNF-based strip exhibited lower quantitative limit of detection (qLOD) (0.44 ng/mL) which was 20-fold lower than that of AuNP-based strip (8.92 ng/mL) for determination of Hg2+, and LM-based strip (0.49 ng/mL) was 18 times as sensitive as AuNP-based strip. In summary, the developed immunosensors using AuNF and LM as signal amplification probes exhibited excellent sensitivity and provided portable, on-site detection for Hg2+.

Bioorthogonal Click of Colloidal Gold Nanoparticles to Antibodies In vivo.

Combining nanotechnology and bioorthogonal chemistry for theranostic strategies offers the possibility to develop next generation nanomedicines. These materials are thought to increase therapeutic outcome and improve current cancer management. Due to their size, nanomedicines target tumors passively. Thus, they can be used for drug delivery purposes. Bioorthogonal chemistry allows for a pretargeting approach. Higher target-to-background drug accumulation ratios can be achieved. Pretargeting can also be used to induce internalization processes or trigger controlled drug release. Colloidal gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) have attracted widespread interest as drug delivery vectors within the last decades. Here, we demonstrate for the first time the possibility to successfully ligate AuNPs in vivo to pretargeted monoclonal antibodies. We believe that this possibility will facilitate the development of AuNPs for clinical use and ultimately, improve state-of-the-art patient care.

Comparative and Selective Interaction of Amino Acid d-Cysteine with Colloidal Gold Nanoparticles in the Presence of a Fluorescent Probe in Aqueous Medium.

In this communication, we report the comparative and selective interaction of amino acid d-cysteine (d-Cys) with citrate caped gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) in the presence of a fluorescent dye, rhodamine B (RhB), in aqueous solution. Au NPs of size 27.5 nm could almost fully quench the steady-state fluorescence emission of RhB at their optimum concentrations in the mixed solution. The interactions of d-Cys, l-Cys, all other relevant d- and l-amino acids, neurotransmitters, and other relevant biological compounds with the Au NPs/RhB mixed solution have been explored by monitoring the fluorescence recovery efficiencies from the almost fully quenched state of RhB fluorescence via a simple steady-state spectrofluorometric method. The higher fluorescence recovery for the interaction of d-Cys with the Au NPs/RhB mixed system is accompanied by a distinct color change (red-wine to bluish-black) of the assay medium after the reaction compared to that of all other interfering compounds considered in this work. The sensitivity of this fluorometric response lies in a broad linear range of concentrations of d-Cys and the limit of detection (LOD) is found to be 4.2 nM, which is low compared to many other methods available in the literature. The different degrees of interaction of d-Cys and l-Cys with the Au NPs/RhB mixed sample have been further explored by circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The selective interaction of d-Cys with the proposed Au NPs/RhB mixed system is also found to be correlated with interparticle cross-linking and aggregations of nanoparticles by the analysis of ζ potential and dynamic light scattering (DLS) study, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), UV–vis absorption spectroscopy etc. The proposed interaction mechanism is further studied with a normal human urine sample to elucidate that the optimized combination of Au NPs and RhB may be realized as an efficient platform for detection of the amino acid d-Cys in a real biosample via a simple fluorometric approach.

Preparation of Monoclonal Antibody against Deoxynivalenol and Development of Immunoassays.

Fusarium toxins are the largest group of mycotoxins, which contain more than 140 known secondary metabolites of fungi. Deoxynivalenol (DON) is one of the most important compounds of this class due to its high toxicity and its potential to harm mankind and animals and a widespread contaminant of agricultural commodities, such as wheat, corn, barley, oats, bread, and biscuits. Herein, a hybridoma cell 8G2 secreting mAb against DON was produced by fusing the splenocytes with a tumor cell line Sp2/0. The obtained mAb had a high affinity (2.39 × 109 L/mol) to DON. An indirect competitive Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ic-ELISA) showed that the linear range for DON detection was 3.125–25 μg/mL, and the minimum inhibitory concentration (IC50) was 18.125 μg/mL with a limit of detection (LOD) of 7.875 μg/mL. A colloidal gold nanoparticle (AuNP) with 20 nm in diameter was synthesized for on-site detection of DON within 10 min with vLOD of 20 μg/mL. To improve the limit of detection, the gold nanoflower (AuNF) with a larger size (75 nm) was used to develop the AuNF-based strip with vLOD of 6.67 μg/mL. Compared to the vLOD of a convectional AuNP-based strip, the AuNF-based strip was three times lower. Herein, three immunoassay methods (ic-ELISA and AuNP/AuNF-based strips) were successfully developed, and these methods could be applied for the DON detection in agricultural products.

Ultrafast transient absorption spectroscopic studies on the Impact of growth time on size, stability, and optical characteristics of colloidal gold nanoparticles

Metallic gold (Au) nanoparticles (NPs) with an average size of less than 20 nm exhibit surface plasmon resonance (SPR), which makes them intriguing candidates for optical and optoelectronic applications. In this work, Turkevich approach is used to synthesize different samples of Au NPs by tuning the growth times during synthesis. Transmission electron micrographs depict that the Au NPs are highly crystalline, monodisperse, and spherical, with an average size of ~13–30 nm. Moreover, a shift in the ultraviolet-visible (UV–visible) absorption spectrum is observed from 525 nm to 542 nm. The change in the SPR band corroborates with the growth time-dependent size enhancement. Ultrafast transient absorption spectroscopy (UTAS) has been employed to characterize the optical properties as well as the stability of NPs, and it is worth noticing that as the growth time increases, the intensity of the ground-state bleach and the intraband transitions reduces and increases at 400 fs and 5 ps, respectively, demonstrating the size dependence of the hot-electron distribution (e--e- scattering). These heated electrons subsequently relax into the lattice through two different forms of scattering, namely electron-phonon (e--ph) and phonon-phonon (ph-ph) scatterings. The stability of the Au NPs has been evaluated by kinetic parameters, with a longer average decay time (τavg) showing enhanced stability of NPs with longer growth durations. Transient absorption spectroscopy reveals the size-dependent dynamics of interfacial charge/energy transfer between the Au NPs and the lattice.