Coarsening of Au nanoparticles embedded in liquid crystalline phospholipid membrane

Abstract

Au nanoparticles embedded in a liquid phospholipid membrane underwent significant morphological changes during heat treatment at a relatively low temperature (below 100 °C) and high humidity conditions. It was shown that the nanoparticles quickly coarsened in a high humidity environment due to the high lateral mobility of the lipid molecules. © 2011 IEEE.