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Thursday, 20th March 2008 (8086 views)

Gold is being used in research to develop and fine-tune fabrication methods for producing multicomponent nanoparticles, according to reports.

According to Nanowerk, there has been "tremendous progress" in the techniques for developing nanoparticles, with a move in recent years away from single component to hybrid, multi-function nanoparticles.

These objects integrate different materials for different applications, such as biomedicine, nanoelectronics and optoelectronics.

Dr Hao Zeng, assistant professor of physics at the University of Buffalo in New York, said the coupling of different components - such as gold and lead sulfide - enhanced the properties of nanoparticles, making them "superior" to their single-component counterparts in a number of areas.

However, he added the study of multicomponent nanoparticles is still in its infancy, compared to single-component and alloy systems.

Nevertheless, Dr Zeng told the site that this early research will be essential in developing a better understanding of the physics and chemistry of multicomponent nanoparticles.

He believes multicomponent systems will be able to demonstrate novel concepts and applications in the "not-so-distant future".

Collodial gold, or nanogold, has been used in scientific applications since English chemist and physicist Michael Farraday began working with the material in the 1850s.

 

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