Synthesis of Gold and Silica Nanoparticles for development of Nanosensors — Presentation Detail — Celebration of Scholars

Instructions

Student presentations must have a faculty sponsor.

Abstracts must include a title and a description of the research, scholarship, or creative work. The description should be 150-225 words in length and constructed in a format or style appropriate for the presenter’s discipline.

The following points should be addressed within the selected format or style for the abstract:

A clear statement of the problem or question you pursued, or the scholarly goal or creative theme achieved in your work.
A brief comment about the significance or uniqueness of the work.
A clear description of the methods used to achieve the purpose or goals for the work.
A statement of the conclusions, results, outcomes, or recommendations, or if the work is still in progress, the results you expect to report at the event.

Presenter photographs should be head and shoulder shots comparable to passport photos.

Additional Information

More information is available at carthage.edu/celebration-scholars/. The following are members of the Research, Scholarship, and Creativity Committee who are eager to listen to ideas and answer questions:

Jun Wang
Kim Instenes
John Kirk
Nora Nickels
Andrew Pustina
James Ripley

Synthesis of Gold and Silica Nanoparticles for development of Nanosensors

Name: Leah Sanford
Major: Chemistry
Hometown: Janesville
Faculty Sponsor: John Kirk
Other Sponsors: SURE
Type of research: SURE
Funding: SURE

Abstract

Nanotechnology is applicable to many different fields including electronics, drug delivery, structural materials, and sensors. The research presented here explores the development of a nanoparticle-based sensor that will detect small organic compounds such as fungicides, herbicides, and pesticides. The main components of these sensors are silicon dioxide nanoparticles due to their ability to self-assemble into nanoporous crystals, thus effectively creating a filtration system. The device’s sensing surface consists of gold nanoparticles, which is chosen due to favorable optical properties and the ease of surface modification. In order to create a uniform colloidal crystal with consistent pores, the nanoparticles must be similar in size. Nanoparticle syntheses, however, are very sensitive to reaction conditions, making it difficult to consistently synthesize size-matched particles. We explore different variables such as reactant concentrations, mixing conditions, and temperature to control and achieve size matching between silicon dioxide and gold nanoparticles.

Poster file