Multilayered core-shell structure of polyol-stabilized calcium fluoride nanoparticles characterized by NMR.

Diethyleneglycol (DEG)-stabilized calcium fluoride (CaF(2)) nanoparticles with a mean diameter of about 20 nm consist of an inorganic crystalline core, covered by a roughly monomolecular layer of organic material according to standard physico-chemical analysis. Multinuclear NMR experiments under magic angle spinning were used to identify the constituent (13)C, (1)H and (19)F atoms. All resonances were assigned (DEG, EtOH, H(2)O, H(3)O(+), OH(-), F(-), CaF(2)), and different populations could be discriminated in terms of their mobilities and correlations with neighboring atoms. We observed several different layers: mobile EtOH on the particle surface, an "interphase" containing immobile DEG molecules and fluoride ions, plus the single-crystalline CaF(2) core. It was thus possible for the first time to characterize by NMR all layered components of such core-shell particles, and the thickness of the newly discovered interphase could be estimated from the NMR intensities.

Nanoscale Hollow Spheres: Microemulsion-Based Synthesis, Structural Characterization and Container-Type Functionality.

A wide variety of nanoscale hollow spheres can be obtained via a microemulsion approach. This includes oxides (e.g., ZnO, TiO2, SnO2, AlO(OH), La(OH)3), sulfides (e.g., Cu2S, CuS) as well as elemental metals (e.g., Ag, Au). All hollow spheres are realized with outer diameters of 10-60 nm, an inner cavity size of 2-30 nm and a wall thickness of 2-15 nm. The microemulsion approach allows modification of the composition of the hollow spheres, fine-tuning their diameter and encapsulation of various ingredients inside the resulting "nanocontainers". This review summarizes the experimental conditions of synthesis and compares them to other methods of preparing hollow spheres. Moreover, the structural characterization and selected properties of the as-prepared hollow spheres are discussed. The latter is especially focused on container-functionalities with the encapsulation of inorganic salts (e.g., KSCN, K2S2O8, KF), biomolecules/bioactive molecules (e.g., phenylalanine, quercetin, nicotinic acid) and fluorescent dyes (e.g., rhodamine, riboflavin) as representative examples.