• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.1753-1758
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• 2012

A novel, efficient and controlled protocol for the synthesis and enhanced photocatalytic activity of $Au@TiO_2$ nanocomposite is developed. $TiO_2$ (P25) was pretreated by employing UV light (${\lambda}$ = 254 nm) and the pretreated $TiO_2$ was uniformly decorated by gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) in presence of sodium citrate and UV light. UV pretreatment makes the $TiO_2$ activated, as electrons were accumulated within the $TiO_2$ in the conduction band. These accumulated electrons facilitate the formation of AuNPs which were of very small size (2-5 nm), similar morphology and uniformly deposited at $TiO_2$ surface. It leads to formation of stable and crystalline $Au@TiO_2$ nanocomposites. The rapidity (13 hours), monodispersity, smaller nanocomposites and easy separation make this protocol highly significant in the area of nanocomposites syntheses. As-synthesized nanocomposites were characterized by TEM, HRTEM, TEM-EDX, SAED, XRD, UV-visible spectrophotometer and zeta potential. Dye degradation experiments of methyl orange show that type I ($Au@TiO_2$ nanocomposites in which $TiO_2$ was pretreated with UV light) has enhanced photocatalytic activity in comparison to type II ($Au@TiO_2$ nanocomposites in which $TiO_2$ was not pretreated with UV light) and $TiO_2$ (P25). This shows that pretreatment of $TiO_2$ provides type I a better catalytic activity.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.365-370
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• 2014

For real-time monitoring of colloidal nanoparticles (NPs) in aqueous media, a light sheet type dark-field microscopy system combined with a microfluidic concentration gradient generator (${\mu}FCGG$-LSDFM) was developed. Various concentrations of colloidal Au NPs were simultaneously generated with the iFCGG and characterized with the LSDFM setup. The number concentrations and hydrodynamic size distributions were measured via particle counting and tracking analysis (PCA and PTA, respectively) approaches. For the 30 nm Au NPs used in this study, the lower detection limit of the LSDFM setup was 3.6 ng/mL, which is about 400 times better than that of optical density measurements under the same ${\mu}FCGG$ system. Additionally, the hydrodynamic diameter distribution of Au NPs was estimated as $39.7{\pm}12.2nm$ with the PTA approach, which agrees well with DLS measurement as well as the manufacturer's specification. We propose this ${\mu}FCGG$-LSDFM setup with features of automatic generation of NP concentration gradient and real-time monitoring of their physicochemical characteristics (e.g., number concentration, and hydrodynamic size distribution) as an important component of future high-throughput screening or high-content analysis platforms of nanotoxicity.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.407-413
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• 2015

As the number of applications containing nanomaterials increase, aquatic ecosystem exposure to nanoparticles (NPs) is unavoidable. In this study, we carried out toxicity assessment to Au-nanoparticles(NPs) of Rana dybowskii eggs and tadpoles. Toxicity was recorded hatching rate, body condition(Snout-tail length, STL), and behavioral sensitivity. Behavioral sensitivity was analyzed to anti-predator behavior using Ethovision XT 9. Au-NPs did not show any toxicity of hatching rate and STL. But, Tadpoles exposed to Au-NPs decrease behavioral sensitivity of stimuli. This study has value of environmental toxicity evaluation because these results show the new way of toxicity assessment.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.1159-1164
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• 2014

A simple, highly sensitive and selective method based on the rhodamine B-covered gold nanoparticle with dual-readout (colorimetric and fluorometric) detection for $\small{L}$-cysteine is proposed. A mechanism is that citrate-stabilized AuNPs were modified with RB by electrostatic interaction, which enables the nanometal surface energy transfer (NSET) from the RB to the AuNPs, quenching the fluorescence. In the presence of $\small{L}$-cysteine, it was used as a competitor in the NSET by the strongly Au-S bonding to release RB from the Au surface and recover the fluorescence, and the red-to-purple color change quickly, which was monitored simply by the naked eye. Under the optimum conditions, the detection limit is as low as 10 nM. The method possessed the advantages of simplicity, rapidity and sensitivity at the same time. The method was also successfully applied to the determination of $\small{L}$-cysteine in human urine samples, and the results were satisfying.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.1128-1134
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• 2012

We investigated a new method for patterning organic field-effect transistors (OFETs) using a photopatternable conducting polymer nanocomposite, consisting of poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT)-coated gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) that had been modified with a photoreactive cinnamate group, to form P3HT-AuNP-CI. We found that the addition of the cinnamate group to the nanoparticle surface assisted the preparation of a solvent-resistive semiconducting film and preserved the P3HT ordering, which was interrupted by Au-P3HT interactions, as well as provided UV-controllable electrical properties. The P3HT-AuNPs-CI films could be microscale-patterned via a UV crosslinking photoreaction, represented as a promising photopatternable semiconductor material for use in advanced applications, with tunable electrical properties for fabrication of sub-micron and microscale electronic devices.

• Advances in nano research
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.169-180
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• 2019

Plasmonic effects of gold and platinum alloy nanoparticles (Au-Pt NPs) and their comparison to size was studied. Various factors including ratios of gold and platinum salt, temperature, pH and time of addition of reducing agent were studied for their effect on particle size. The size of gold and platinum alloy nanoparticles increases with increasing concentration of Pt NPs. Temperature dependent synthesis of gold and platinum alloy nanoparticles shows decrease in size at higher temperature while at lower temperature agglomeration occurs. For pH dependent synthesis of Au-Pt nanoparticles, size was found to be increased by increase in pH from 4 to 10. Increasing the time of addition of reducing agent for synthesis of pure and gold-platinum alloy nanoparticles shows gradual increase in size as well as increase in heterogeneity of nanoparticles. The size and elemental analysis of Au-Pt nanoparticles were characterized by UV-Vis spectroscopy, XRD, SEM and EDX techniques.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.383-396
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• 2017

The photothermal therapy is a method of cell ablation using the heat converted from the incident light by photothermal transducers. It offers a selective treatment to desired abnormal cells, in particular, tumor tissues. Among various photothermal agents, gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) have received enormous attention due to their unique physicochemical property over last two decades. In this review, we address research strategies and methods to improve treatment efficacy by organizing recent research works. We mainly focus on research works to enhance light-to-heat conversion via optimizing the morphology of Au NPs and related assemblies as well as the strategies to deliver Au NPs efficiently to specific targets. We also introduce convergence research efforts to combine Au NP-mediated photothermal treatment and other functions such as diagnostic capabilities and other therapeutic methods.

• Macromolecular Research
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.211-215
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• 2007

Hybrid thin film nanostructures composed of metal nanoparticles (NPs) and self-assembled polymer films with different spatial distributions of NPs were analyzed by optical waveguide spectroscopy (OWS). Specifically, the dielectric constants were calculated using effective medium theory for the incorporation of 1 vol% Au NP into the block copolymer (BCP) films having a cylindrical nanodomain morphology. Three cases were considered: uniform distribution of NPs in the film; selective distribution of NPs only in the cylindrical domains; and segregation of NPs to the center of the cylindrical domains. The optical waveguide spectra derived from the calculated dielectric constants demonstrate the feasibility of experimentally distinguishing the composite nanostructures with different inner morphologies in the hybrid metal NP-BCP nanostructures, by the measurement of the dielectric constants using OWS.

• Advances in nano research
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• v.11 no.6
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• pp.657-665
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• 2021

The present work aimed to explore green approach via aqueous leaves extract of Murraya koenigii (ALEMk) for the synthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPsMk) in single step. The synthesis process was visualized with a color change and monitored by employing UV/Visible spectroscopy and a clear peak attained at 420 nm confirming the synthesis of AgNPsMk. The possible functional groups present in the extract which participated in the synthesis of AgNPsMk were identified with the help of FTIR spectroscopy. Further characterization using TEM images revealed the spherical shape of AgNPsMk with average particle size of 20 nm displaying well dispersion throughout the solution. Pronounced antioxidant activities of AgNPsMk at increased concentrations observed which evidencing strong radical scavenging ability. Moreover, AgNPsMk exhibited strong antibacterial behavior when tested against bacterial strains of Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis. Moving ahead, in vitro cytotoxicity work revealed potent cell viability loss appearing in AU565 and HeLa cancer cell lines on exposure to AgNPsMk at increased concentration. Finally, in vivo assessment carried out inside male Wistar rats indicated non toxic effect on examined liver tissues besides biochemical analysis including bilirubin, alkaline phosphtase (ALP) and serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase (SGPT) which found within the normal range when compared with control. The prior research work profoundly apprises the potential of green synthesized AgNPsMk to play a significant role in biomedical applications and formulations.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2013.08a
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• pp.268.1-268.1
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• 2013

Immobilization of conducting nanoparticles on a nanogap comprising two electrodes spaced at a distance comparable to the particle size can be used as a simple and sensitive method of detecting the particles. In this work, we have examined the performance of the nanogap devices in the measurement of metallic nanoparticles, particularly gold nanoparticles (Au NPs). Detection of pM-level Au NPs in an aqueous suspension was quite straightforward irrespective of the existence of non-conducting materials. Speed of detection or the time necessary for the completion of the measurement, however, was strongly dependent upon the immobilization process. Active trapping process was found to be much more efficient and also effective in the detection of nanoparticles than its passive counterpart.