Analysis and characterization of multifunctional oligothiophene-silica hybrid nanomaterials by AF4-MALS-FD

Synthesis and applications of new functional nanoparticles are topics of increasing interest in many fields of nano(bio) technology. Chemical modifications of inorganic nanoparticles are often necessary to improve their features as spectroscopic tracers or chemical sensors, and to increase water solubility and biocompatibility for applications in nano(bio) technology. Analysis and characterization of structured nanoparticles are then key steps for their synthesis optimization and final quality control. In this work we present results indicating that Asymmetrical Flow Field-Flow Fractionation (AF4) online coupled with Multi-Angle Light Scattering (MALS) and Fluorescence Detection (FD) can become the unparallel methodology for size and optical characterization of new, structured, fluorescent nanomaterials.