A method for the growth of uniform silica shells on different size and morphology upconversion nanoparticles

Nanoscale Adv. 2021, 3(12), 3522–3529. doi: 10.1039/D0NA00858C

Abstract

Lanthanide-doped upconversion nanoparticles have emerged as attractive candidates for biomedical applications due to their excitation and emission wavelengths, which enable deeper tissue penetration, higher resolution through reduced scattering, and improved imaging contrast from lower autofluorescence background. Encapsulation within a biocompatible silica shell is often necessary for dispersion in complex media or for further surface functionalization. However, achieving uniform silica coating can be challenging, frequently resulting in incomplete coating, aggregation, or silica byproducts. In this work, we demonstrate a method to accurately predict the experimental conditions required to form high yields of silica-coated upconversion nanoparticles, regardless of their morphology or size.

For citation:
Ureña-Horno, E.; Kyriazi, M.E.; Kanaras, A. G.
"A method for the growth of uniform silica shells on different size and morphology upconversion nanoparticles"
Nanoscale Adv. 2021, 3(12), 3522–3529. doi: 10.1039/D0NA00858C

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