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Electrochemical characterization of core@shell CoFe2O4/Au composite

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Abstract

In this paper, we address the synthesis and characterization of the core@shell composite magneto-plasmonic cobalt ferrite–gold (Co-ferrite/Au) nanosystem. The synthesis Co-ferrite/Au nanocomposite is not obvious, hence it was of interest to generate it in a simple straightforward method. Co-ferrite/Au nanocomposite was generated by synthesizing first by thermal decomposition Co-ferrite nanoparticles (NPs). On a second step, ionic gold (Au3+) was reduced at the surface of Co-ferrite NPs by ultrasound, to obtain the metallic Au shell. The characterization of the nanomaterial was achieved by microscopy, spectroscopy, and performing magnetic measurements. However, what is attractive about our work is the use of electrochemical techniques as analytical tools. The key technique was cyclic voltammetry, which provided information about the nature and structure of the nanocomposite, allowing us to confirm the core@shell structure.

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Abbreviations

NP:

Nanoparticle

kHz:

Kilohertz

DMSA:

Dimercaptosuccinic acid

DMSO:

Dimethyl sulfoxide

ICP-EOS:

Inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry

TEM:

Transmission electron microscopy

FT-IR:

Fourier transformed infrared

XRD:

X-ray diffraction

UV/vis:

Ultraviolet–visible

SQUID:

Superconducting quantum interference device

kOe:

Kilo-oersted

H :

Magnetic field strength

GPE:

Graphite paste electrode

CV:

Cyclic voltammetry

SCE:

Saturated calomel electrode

SPR:

Surface plasmon resonance

λ :

Wavelength

CVs:

Cyclic voltammograms

emu:

Electromagnetic units

erg:

Erg

H c :

Coercivity

M r :

Remanent magnetization

M s :

Saturation magnetization

M r/M s :

Squareness ratio

r :

Mass density

vs:

Against

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Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge funding support from the European commission U (NMP3-SL-2008-214107-Nanomagma) and Fondazione Cariplo through the Project No. 2010–0612 “Chemical synthesis and characterization of magneto-plasmonic nano-heterostructures”.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dipartimento di Chimica, “Ugo Schiff”, Università degli Studi di Firenze, Via della Lastruccia 3, 50019, Sesto Fiorentino, FI, Italy

    Francesco Carlà

  2. Laboratorio di Magnetismo Molecolare, INSTM, Dipartimento di Chimica, Università degli Studi di Firenze, Polo Scientifico, Via della Lastruccia 3, 50019, Sesto Fiorentino, FI, Italy

    Giulio Campo, Claudio Sangregorio, Andrea Caneschi, César de Julián Fernández & Lourdes I. Cabrera

  3. C.N.R.—Istituto di Scienze e Tecnologie Molecolari (I.S.T.M.), Via C. Golgi 19, 20133, Milan, Italy

    Claudio Sangregorio & César de Julián Fernández

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  1. Francesco Carlà
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  2. Giulio Campo
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  3. Claudio Sangregorio
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Correspondence to Lourdes I. Cabrera.

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Carlà, F., Campo, G., Sangregorio, C. et al. Electrochemical characterization of core@shell CoFe2O4/Au composite. J Nanopart Res 15, 1813 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11051-013-1813-0

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