Generation of composite Au/TiO2 nanoparticles by pulsed laser ablation in aqueous media

Composite nanoparticles have been known for their potential applications in photocatalysis, medical and optical limiters. In particular, Au/TiO2 composite nanoparticles have attracted attention because of its remarkable properties. However, commonly Au/TiO2 composite nanoparticles are synthesized by chemical method using toxic precursor and reducing agents, and problems by their residue arised. Here, we examined a new synthesis method of composite nanoparticles by pulsed laser ablation (PLA) without any chemical agents, but only with distilled water. Au/TiO2 composite nanoparticles were obtained by PLA of Ti plate covered with Au and TiO2 nanoparticles, which were preliminarily synthesized by PLA in distilled water. The synthesized nanoparticles were characterized by using TEM, UV-vis absorption spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering and XRD. The TEM images showed that composite nanoparticles including Au-TiO2 core-shell nanoparticles were successfully generated with diameter around 100 nm.