Heterogeneous catalysis is of paramount importance in chemistry and energy applications. Catalysts that couple light into chemical reactions a directed, orbital-specific manner would greatly reduce the input requirements transformations, revolutionizing catalysis-driven chemistry. Here we report room temperature dissociation H2 on gold nanoparticles using visible light. Surface plasmons excited Au nanoparticle decay hot electrons with energies between vacuum level work function metal. In...

Solar illumination of broadly absorbing metal or carbon nanoparticles dispersed in a liquid produces vapor without the requirement heating fluid volume. When particles are water at ambient temperature, energy is directed primarily to vaporization into steam, with much smaller fraction resulting fluid. Sunlight-illuminated can also drive H(2)O-ethanol distillation, yielding fractions significantly richer ethanol content than simple thermal distillation. These phenomena enable important...

Stable Au nanoshell−J-aggregate complexes are formed that exhibit coherent coupling between the localized plasmons of a nanoshell and excitons molecular J-aggregates adsorbed on its surface. By tuning plasmon energies across exciton line J-aggregate, plasmon−exciton for these obtained. The strength this interaction is dependent specific mode nanoparticle coupled to J-aggregate exciton. From model based Gans theory, we obtain an expression hybridized states complex.

The lack of readily available sterilization processes for medicine and dentistry practices in the developing world is a major risk factor propagation disease. Modern medical facilities developed often use autoclave systems to sterilize instruments equipment process waste that could contain harmful contagions. Here, we show broadband light-absorbing nanoparticles as solar photothermal heaters, which generate high-temperature steam standalone, efficient useful sanitation or materials...

When an Au nanoparticle in a liquid medium is illuminated with resonant light of sufficient intensity, nanometer scale envelope vapor—a "nanobubble"—surrounding the particle, formed. This nanoscale onset well-known process boiling, occurring at single nucleation site, resulting from photothermal response nanoparticle. Here we examine bubble formation individual metallic detail. Incipient nanobubble observed by monitoring plasmon resonance shift individual, nanoparticle, when its local...

With more than a billion people lacking accessible drinking water, there is critical need to convert nonpotable sources such as seawater water suitable for human use. However, energy requirements of desalination plants account half their operating costs, so alternative, lower approaches are equally critical. Membrane distillation (MD) has shown potential due its low temperature and pressure requirements, but the requirement heating input makes it intensive. Here, we demonstrate...

Protein-nanoparticle interactions are of central importance in the biomedical applications nanoparticles, as well growing biosafety concerns nanomaterials. We observe that gold nanoparticles initiate protein aggregation at physiological pH, resulting formation extended, amorphous protein-nanoparticle assemblies, accompanied by large aggregates without embedded nanoparticles. Proteins Au nanoparticle surface observed to be partially unfolded; these nanoparticle-induced misfolded proteins...

Au nanoparticles with plasmon resonances in the near-infrared (NIR) region of spectrum efficiently convert light into heat, a property useful for photothermal ablation cancerous tumors subsequent to nanoparticle uptake at tumor site. A critical aspect this process is size, which influences both and efficiency. Here, we report direct comparative study ∼90 nm diameter nanomatryoshkas (Au/SiO2/Au) ∼150 nanoshells therapeutic efficacy highly aggressive triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) mice....

Since its discovery in the 1970s, surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) has been primarily associated with substrates composed of nanostructured noble metals. Here we investigate chemically synthesized nanocrystal aggregates aluminum, an inexpensive, highly abundant, and sustainable metal, as SERS substrates. Al are capable substantial near-infrared enhancements, similar to Au nanoparticles. The intrinsic nanoscale surface oxide nanocrystals supports molecule-substrate interactions that...

Photothermal ablation based on resonant illumination of near-infrared-absorbing noble metal nanoparticles that have accumulated in tumors is a highly promising cancer therapy, currently multiple clinical trials. A crucial aspect this therapy the nanoparticle size for optimal tumor uptake. class known as hollow Au (or Au-Ag) nanoshells (HGNS) appealing because near-IR resonances are achievable system with diameters less than 100 nm. However, study, we report surprising finding vivo HGNS...

The light-triggered release of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) from gold nanoparticle-based, plasmon resonant vectors, such as nanoshells, shows great promise for gene delivery in living cells. Here we show that intracellular can be performed on molecules associate with the DNA a host−guest complex bound to nanoshells. DAPI (4′,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole), bright blue fluorescent molecule binds reversibly double-stranded DNA, was chosen visualize this light-induced process. Illumination...

Understanding the interactions of biomolecules with noble metal surfaces is critical to our development functional biomedical nanodevices and accurate biosensors. Here we use surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) infrared absorption (SEIRA) on Au nanoshell substrates study adenine two derivatives, thiolated polyadenine single-stranded DNA (polyA) adenosine monophosphate (AMP), surfaces. pH-dependent conformational changes these molecular species adsorbed were observed using SERS,...

Nanoparticles that both absorb and scatter light, when dispersed in a liquid, optical energy heat reduced fluid volume due to the combination of multiple scattering absorption. This can induce localized liquid-vapor phase change within without requirement heating entire fluid. For binary liquid mixtures, this process results vaporization more volatile component mixture. When subsequently condensed, these two steps condensation constitute distillation mediated by nanoparticles driven...

The ever-increasing global need for potable water requires practical, sustainable approaches purifying abundant alternative sources such as seawater, high-salinity processed water, or underground reservoirs. Evaporation-based solutions are of particular interest treating high salinity since conventional methods reverse osmosis have increasing energy requirements higher concentrations dissolved minerals. Demonstration efficient evaporation with heat localization in nanoparticle under solar...

Aptamers are single-stranded DNA/RNA oligomers that fold into three-dimensional conformations in the presence of specific molecular targets. Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) thiol-bound DNA aptamer self-assembled monolayers on Au nanoshell surfaces provides a direct, label-free detection method for interaction aptamers with target molecules. A spectral cross-correlation function, Γ, is shown to be useful metric quantify complex changes SERS spectra resulting from conformational...

Significance We demonstrate a magnetic resonance image-enhancing nanoparticle with the potential for use in multiple biomedical imaging and therapeutic applications. The contains internal gadolinium ions T 1 contrast, located between an inner core outer Au layer, multilayered geometry. proton relaxivity is enhanced through longer-range interactions protons outside nanoparticle, radical departure from molecular chelates currently MRI. This geometry provides very large enhancement (r ∼ 24 mM...

Significance Gold-based nanoparticles that absorb near-infrared light have shown the potential to selectively target and treat cancer through highly efficient light-to-heat conversion. This study shows gold-based can be coated with drug-bearing host biomolecules for remotely triggerable release. Near-infrared light-triggered release of docetaxel from a nanoshell-based DNA complex, lapatinib human serum albumin complexes, is demonstrated. There strong dependence upon type...

Conventional bioethanol for transportation fuel typically consumes agricultural feedstocks also suitable human consumption and requires large amounts of energy conversion feedstock to fuel. Alternative feedstocks, optimally those not in demand consumption, off-grid sources processing would both contribute making far more sustainable than current practices. Cellulosic production involves three steps: the extraction sugars from cellulosic feedstock, fermentation produce ethanol, purification...

Since its discovery, surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) has shown outstanding promise of identifying trace amounts unknown molecules in rapid, portable formats. However, the many different types nanoparticles or nanostructured metallic SERS substrates created over past few decades show substantial variability spectra they provide. These inconsistencies have even raised speculation that substrate-specific spectral libraries must be compiled for practical use this type spectroscopy....

Water production from solar thermal desalination is limited by the energy consumption of phase change. Resonant heat exchange between matched saline feed and purified distillate flow rates enables optimized recovery vaporization energy.

Plasmonic nanoantennas focus light below the diffraction limit, creating strong field enhancements, typically within a nanoscale junction. Placing nanostructure junction can greatly enhance nanostructure's innate optical absorption, resulting in intense photothermal heating that could ultimately compromise both and nanoantenna. Here, we demonstrate three-dimensional "antenna-reactor" geometry results large thermal gradients, inducing local temperature increases confined reactor while...

A promising clinical trial utilizing gold-silica core-shell nanostructures coated with polyethylene glycol (PEG) has been reported for near-infrared (NIR) photothermal therapy (PTT) of prostate cancer. The next critical step PTT is the visualization therapeutically relevant nanoshell (NS) concentrations at tumor site. Here we report synthesis PEGylated Gd2O3-mesoporous silica/gold core/shell NSs (Gd2O3-MS NSs) NIR properties that also supply sufficient MRI contrast to be visualized...

The detection and identification of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) their derivatives, compounds (PACs), are essential for environmental health monitoring, assessing toxicological exposure associated risks. PAHs/PACs the most dangerous chemicals found in tobacco smoke, cigarette use during pregnancy can convey these molecules to developing fetus through placenta. This is with many negative outcomes, from premature birth sudden infant death syndrome adverse neurodevelopmental...

Can a metal be made chiral? Evidence is provided for the induction of chirality in metals doped with chiral molecules (see figure). Gold and silver L-glutathione or L-quinine either D- L-tryptophan show clear differences emission efficiency photoelectrons when irradiated clockwise counter-clockwise circularly polarized UV light.