Studying citric acid-mediated synthesis of gold nanoparticles in ionic liquids by in situ liquid phase STEM: A reproducible approach
Presented by Rachele Butti of Empa Dübendorf, Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology
Watch it here: https://youtu.be/5IRm0QOcyR0
Using Fusion AX, this study develops a reliable method for synthesizing gold nanoparticles in two ionic liquids, enabling real-time observation of their formation using variable-temperature liquid-phase STEM. By modifying hot-injection synthesis, the researchers slowed down the gold reduction process enough to directly observe how nanoparticles nucleate and grow. They found that the two ionic liquids behave very differently: in [BMIm]Cl, gold nanoparticles can move, rearrange, and merge as they grow, especially at higher temperatures, whereas in [TBA]Cl, their movement and growth are much more limited. The experiments also revealed that the ionic liquid itself forms periodic nanoscale structures. Overall, the work provides a controlled model system that enables a detailed, in situ study of gold nanoparticle nucleation and growth in ionic liquids.
Read more here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0968432825000976?via%3Dihub
