Inorganic nanoparticles offer novel promising properties for biological sensing and imaging, as well as in therapeutics. However, these applications are often complicated by the possible toxicity of conventional nanomaterials, arising as a result of inadequate purification procedures of nanoparticles obtained via synthetic pathways using toxic or non-biocompatible substances. We review novel femtosecond laser-assisted methods, which enable the preparation of metal nanomaterials and metastable nanoalloys in clean, biologically friendly aqueous environment (�green� synthesis) and thus completely solve the toxicity problem. The proposed methods, including laser ablation as well as fragmentation based on the self-transformation of the femtosecond pulse into a supercontinuum to initiate a controlled laser-induced growth (LIG) or fragmentation (LIF) of micro/nanoparticles in solution.  Stable metal colloids of extremely small size (~2 nm) with a low coefficient of variation (15�25%) can be produced. The techniques can also be used to fabricate metastable nanoalloys based on various elements, including Au, Ag, Cu, Co and Fe which some are currently difficult to synthesize using standard chemical synthesis due to the strongly dissimilar reduction kinetic of the individual metal salts. Unique properties of the laser-synthesized AgAu and CoAu nanoalloys will be discussed.

Ultrafast laser based "green" synthesis of inorganic nanoparticles and nanoalloys in biocompatible aqueous solution

241st National Meeting (2011)

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