title: Facile synthesis of pentacle gold-copper alloy nanocrystals and their plasmonic and catalytic properties.
abstract: The combination of gold and copper is a good way to pull down the cost of gold and ameliorate the instability of copper. Through shape control, the synergy of these two metals can be better exploited. Here, we report an aqueous phase route to the synthesis of pentacle gold-copper alloy nanocrystals with fivefold twinning, the size of which can be tuned in the range from 45 to 200 nm. The growth is found to start from a decahedral core, followed by protrusion of branches along twinning planes. Pentacle products display strong localized surface plasmon resonance peaks in the near-infrared region. Under irradiation by an 808-nm laser, 70-nm pentacle nanocrystals exhibit a notable photothermal effect to kill 4T1 murine breast tumours established on BALB/c mice. In addition, 70-nm pentacle nanocrystals show better catalytic activity than conventional citrate-coated 5-nm Au nanoparticles towards the reduction of p-nitrophenol to p-aminophenol by sodium borohydride.
authors.affiliation: 1] Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, P.R. China [2] Center of Advanced Nanocatalysis (CAN-USTC) and Department of Chemical Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Rong
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, P.R. China.
authors.forename: You-Cheng
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Molecular Vaccinology and Molecular Diagnostics & Center for Molecular Imaging and Translational Medicine, School of Public Health, Xiamen University, Xiamen, Fujian 361102, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Xiaoyong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Molecular Vaccinology and Molecular Diagnostics & Center for Molecular Imaging and Translational Medicine, School of Public Health, Xiamen University, Xiamen, Fujian 361102, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Zhantong
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Molecular Vaccinology and Molecular Diagnostics & Center for Molecular Imaging and Translational Medicine, School of Public Health, Xiamen University, Xiamen, Fujian 361102, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Gang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Longping
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wen
authors.affiliation: 1] Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, P.R. China [2] Center of Advanced Nanocatalysis (CAN-USTC) and Department of Chemical Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Qunxiang
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: 1] Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, P.R. China [2] Synergetic Innovation Center of Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Xiaoping
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Molecular Imaging and Nanomedicine (LOMIN), National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB), National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892, USA.
authors.forename: Xiaoyuan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: 1] Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, P.R. China [2] Center of Advanced Nanocatalysis (CAN-USTC) and Department of Chemical Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zeng
authors.affiliation: 1] Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, P.R. China [2] Synergetic Innovation Center of Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, P.R. China.
authors.forename: J G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Hou
mesh_terms: D000497:Alloys / Q000138:chemical synthesis* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000818:Animals; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy; D002384:Catalysis; D003300:Copper / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006046:Gold / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006358:Hot Temperature / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D053758:Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D010789:Phototherapy; D011897:Random Allocation; D023041:Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays
chemical_list: D000497:Alloys; D006046:Gold; D003300:Copper