Considerations for Quantification of Gold Nanoparticles using Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry on a Biologically Relevant Matrix

Published

May 28, 2020

Author(s)

Shinichiro N. Muramoto, Joe Bennett

Abstract

This study describes the use of inkjet printing for the preparation of test materials containing gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) on a biologically relevant matrix, and discusses the methods of using time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) for their spatially resolved quantification. Evaluation of test materials containing AuNPs with nominal diameters of (30, 80, 100, and 150) nm deposited onto gelatin with loadings ranging from (34 up to 67,000) fg per spot suggests that ToF-SIMS has the sensitivity and the dynamic range to quantify NP deposits in a biological matrix at toxicologically relevant concentrations, although it was not capable of reliably determine the size of the AuNPs from the intensity data. Regardless, its ability to extract intensity data from individual ROIs showed that spatially resolved quantification is possible, even when multiple features exist in a single image and in a single depth profile. The argon gas cluster source used for sputtering led to a matrix dilution effect where the matrix surrounding the AuNPs became negligible, which would facilitate the preparation of quantitative test materials.

Citation

Surface and Interface Analysis

Pub Type

Journals

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Keywords

tof-sims, cluster source, nanoparticles, quantification

Citation

Muramoto, S. and Bennett, J. (2020), Considerations for Quantification of Gold Nanoparticles using Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry on a Biologically Relevant Matrix, Surface and Interface Analysis, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=930100 (Accessed April 28, 2026)

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