Silver and gold nanoparticles for sensor and antibacterial applications

Green biogenic method for the synthesis of gold and silver nanoparticles using Solanum lycopersicums extract as reducing agent was studied. The biomolecules present in the extract was responsible for reduction of Au3+ and Ag+. ions from HAuCl4 and AgNO3 respectively. The prepared nanoparticles were characterized by UV-visible spectroscopy (UV-vis), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) technique to identify the size, shape of nanoparticles and biomolecules act as reducing agents. UV-visible spectra show the surface plasmon resonance peak at 546 nm and 445 nm corresponding to gold and silver nanoparticles respectively. Crystalline nature of the nanoparticles was evident from TEM images and XRD analysis. TEM images showed average size of 14 nm and 12 nm for prepared gold and silver nanoparticles respectively. FTIR analysis provides the presence of biomolecules responsible for the reduction and stability of the prepared silver and gold nanoparticles. XRD analysis of the silver and gold nanoparticles confirmed the formation of metallic silver and gold. The prepared gold and silver nanoparticles show good sensing and antimicrobial activity. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.