AbstractThe use of organosilica sol-gels for controlled in-situ formation of metal nanoparticles is investigated. The use of an organically-modified alkoxysilane precursor provides chemically interacting nanopores for the sequestration and binding of metal ions followed by chemical reduction to form metal nanoparticles. The sol-gel matrix acts as a structural template to enable growth of the metal nanoparticles within its porous silica framework, and prevents clustering to form precipitate. Furthermore, simple redox chemistry is used to convert pre-formed copper nanoparticles in the sol-gel matrix into silver and gold nanoparticles. A particularly important aspect of this synthesis method is that all the reaction chemistry is performed under ambient conditions. The particles are characterized by high resolution transmission electron microscopy for their sizes and size distribution. The elemental composition of the particles is determined by energy dispersive X-ray analysis.
Self-Immolative nanoparticles for stimuli-triggered activation, covalent trapping and accumulation of in situ generated small molecule theranostic fragments