Plasmonic nanomaterials have the unique ability to sustain collective oscillations of electrons when they interact with light. This property can be utilised in many different applications ranging from sensing to photothermal cancer treatment. Traditionally, Au and Ag have been the dominant plasmonic metals studied in this field, and there is a reason for that. Au is inert and easy to handle, while Ag provides the largest near-field enhancement. However, as the field expanded, the drawbacks of the two noble metals rose to the surface. They are rare, expensive and not entirely biocompatible. This led to the study of alternative plasmonic metals, such as Al and Cu.
Recently, Mg has made a bold appearance in the field, as a cheaper, earth-abundant and inherently biocompatible plasmonic metal that can sustain oscillations across the UV-vis-NIR. To the surprise of many, colloidally synthesised Mg nanoparticles were also found to be perfectly air-stable. Significant synthetic advancements and particle characterisations have been made for colloidal Mg nanoparticles in recent years, through which Mg nanoparticles were found to have unique shapes. Demonstrations were made for the decoration and shell formations on Mg nanoparticles, while synthetic control over particle size distributions have also been unravelled.
Andrey, along with his colleagues in the Optical Nanomaterials group, is studying the properties and applications of plasmonic Mg nanoparticles. His research spans from synthesising and fabricating novel Mg nanostructures to characterising their performance in sensing applications.
NanoDTC Associate, a2022