View Publication | CEMHTI CNRS UPR3079 Orléans France

Z.Li, B.Tan, M.Allix, A.I.Cooper, M.J.Rosseinsky, 'Direct Coprecipitation Route to Monodisperse Dual- Functionalized Magnetic Iron Oxide Nanocrystals without Size Selection', Small 4,2 231 (2008) doi:10.1002/smll.200700575

Water-soluble monodisperse superparamagnetic Fe3O4 nanocrystals decorated with two distinct functional groups have been prepared in a single-step procedure by injecting iron precursors into a refluxing aqueous solution of a polymer ligand, trithiol-terminated poly(methacrylic acid) (PMAA-PTTM), bearing both carboxylate and thiol functionalities. The ratio of carboxylic acid groups in the polymer protecting ligand to the iron precursors plays a key role in determining the particle size and particle size distribution. The surface functionalities of the ligands allow post-synthesis modification of the materials to produce watersoluble fluorescent magnetic nanocrystals.