Chemists perfect fast way to synthesize libraries of gold nanoparticles

09-07-2005: University of Oregon chemist Jim Hutchison discovered a new way of rapidly generating libraries of tiny particles with great promise for research and development at the nanoscale.

"We've discovered a method for generating a diverse library of functionalized gold particles quickly and easily," said Hutchison, who directs the university's Materials Science Institute. "Basic research of this type is the key to finding out what kinds of new electronic, optical and pharmaceutical products actually will come to market."

An article in Inorganic Chemistry describes how to synthesize the versatile particles, built with cores of 11 gold atoms, and discloses their properties. Nanomaterials and technologies are projected to become a trillion dollar industry by 2010 and affect every industrial and consumer product sector, Hutchison said.

One of the keys to understanding the size-dependent properties and applications of nanoparticles is generating libraries of particles with different sizes for physical study. Earlier this year, Hutchison's laboratory reported success in generating a similar library of larger particles, with cores having about 100 gold atoms. The 11-atom and 100-atom libraries span a size range of 0.8 to 1.5 nanometers, a range of particular interest to nanoscientists and technologists.