jp311252v_si_001.pdf (1.9 MB)
Exploring the Interior of Hollow Fluorescent Carbon Nanoparticles
journal contribution
posted on 2016-02-19, 20:59 authored by Somen Mondal, Tarasankar Das, Prasun Ghosh, Arnab Maity, Pradipta PurkayasthaWe synthesized hollow fluorescent
carbon nanoparticles (HFCNs)
using the simple procedure reported by Fang et al. [ACS Nano 2012, 6, 400−409]. The size distribution was uniform, providing spherical
carbon nanoparticles with a hollow. In the present work we have focused
on exploration of the interior of the HFCNs as this was hardly clarified
until now. Understanding the importance of HFCNs in biological aspects
due to their potentially low cytotoxicity and inherent fluorescent
property, we have defined that the polarity of the interior of the
HFCNs resembles that of ethanol by using suitable hydrophobic and
hydrophilic fluorescent probes. Moreover, we have shown that π-electron-rich
hydrophobic molecules, such as pyrene, can form a π–π
stack with the inner wall of the HFCNs. Our findings are expected
to open avenues in the usage of HFCNs as drug carriers and markers
in bioimaging.