Photomelting and photofragmentation of silver nanoparticles suspended in ethanol

An optical method to obtain a colloidal solution starting from a mixture of silver nanopowder and ethanol is presented. The particles of the silver nanopowder do not exhibit a specific shape, however in the colloidal solution are spherical. This method is carry out when the mixture is irradiated with a pulsed laser at 532 nm via optical fiber. Due to a stronger absorption of the laser light by silver nanoparticles arise both photofragmentation and photomelting processes. The photomelting process starts when the laser energy is 5 mJ/cm2, inducing an enlargement of nanoparticles whereas the photofragmentation occurs when the laser energy is 25 mJ/cm2 causing a reduction on their sizes (the higher energy is, the smaller nanoparticles are). Results show that it is possible to obtain a colloidal silver solution and to control the particle size by adjusting the laser energy. Experiments were performed at 5 and 25 mJ/cm2, and the results are presented.