Magnetic nanochains

Magnetic nanochains

Magnetic nanochains are a new class of magnetoresponsive and superparamagneticnanostructures with highly anisotropic shapes which can be manipulated using magnetic field and magnetic field gradient. Such nanochains consist of self-assembled nanoparticle clusters which are magnetically assembled and fixated into a chain. Among the various linking methods used are silica coating, polyacrylic acid (PAA) coating, tetraethoxysilane condensation, biotinylation or glucose decomposition. Typically, the primary building blocks of these nanostructures are individual superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs). Nanoparticle clusters which are composed of a number of individual magnetic nanoparticles (ca. 100 SPIONs) are known as magnetic nanobeads with a diameter of 50–200 nanometers.