A Facile Route of Manufacturing of Silicon-Based Nanostructures with Tuned Plasmonic Properties

Abstract

Abstract An environment-friendly method of pulsed laser ablation in liquids is successfully employed for structural modification of silicon nanoparticles leading to a considerable narrowing of their size distribution accompanied with a reduction of the mean size. Contamination-free conditions of synthesis ensure the chemical purity of formed nanostructures that may reduce toxicity issues. Such a laser-induced modification leads to the appearance of plasmonic properties in semiconductor-based nanomaterials. Their spectral position can easily be varied in the whole visible range. Combined in one nanoparticle properties of semiconductors and noble metals can strongly promote applications of composite laser-synthesized nanoparticles for biosensing (using their plasmonic-based surface-enhanced ability) and bioimaging (using their both optical and magnetic abilities) purposes.