Fabrication of gold nanoparticles using luminol as a reductive and protective reagent

An easy and simple reaction is employed to synthesize ligand-protected gold nanoparticles. In this reaction, luminol is used as a reductive and protective reagent to prepare gold nanoparticles in aqueous solution. It includes two steps: chemiluminescence and formation of gold nanoparticles. The formation processes were monitored by resonance light scattering spectroscopy, and the results were observed by transmission electron microscopy and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Highly stable gold nanoparticles about 110 +/- 2 nm in size can be readily obtained. A new insight into the design of water-soluble ligand-protected gold nanoparticles for biomedical, analytical, and catalytic applications has been provided.