One-pot polyol synthesis of monosize PVP-coated sub-5nm Fe3O4 nanoparticles for biomedical applications

Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)-coated sub-5nm monosize Fe3O4 nanoparticles were synthesized by reduction of Fe(III) acetylacetonate in the presence of PVP polymer as surfactant in one-pot polyol process. Their microstructure and magnetic properties were characterized by XRD, TEM/HRTEM and VSM. It is found that the nanoparticles have high crystallinity with distinct lattices and the magnetic measurements reveal their well-defined superparamagnetic behavior at room temperature. Such Fe3O4 nanoparticles with tailorable size and tunable magnetic properties are promising for biomedical applications. (C) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.