Volume 6, Issue 9 pp. 1012-1021
Full Paper

Microbial Synthesis of Multishaped Gold Nanostructures

Sujoy K. Das

Sujoy K. Das

Department of Biological Chemistry Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science Kolkata (India)

Present Address: School of Biotechnology, Dublin City University, Dublin 9, Ireland

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Akhil R. Das

Akhil R. Das

Polymer Science Unit Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science Kolkata (India)

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Arun K. Guha

Corresponding Author

Arun K. Guha

Department of Biological Chemistry Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science Kolkata (India)

Department of Biological Chemistry Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science Kolkata (India).Search for more papers by this author
First published: 11 May 2010
Citations: 132

Abstract

The development of methodologies for the synthesis of nanoparticles of well-defined size and shape is a challenging one and constitutes an important area of research in nanotechnology. This Full Paper describes the controlled synthesis of multishaped gold nanoparticles at room temperature utilizing a simple, green chemical method by the interaction of chloroauric acid (HAuCl4 · 3H20) and cell-free extract of the fungal strain Rhizopus oryzae. The cell-free extract functions as a reducing, shape-directing, as well as stabilizing, agent. Different shapes of gold nanocrystals, for example, triangular, hexagonal, pentagonal, spherical, spheroidal, urchinlike, two-dimensional nanowires, and nanorods, are generated by manipulating key growth parameters, such as gold ion concentration, solution pH, and reaction time. The synthesized nanostructures are characterized by UV/Vis and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and energy dispersive X-ray analysis studies. Electron diffraction patterns reveal the crystalline nature of the nanoparticles and a probable mechanism is proposed for the formation of the different structural entities.

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