Synthesis and characterization of Ag-Ni bimetallic nanoparticles by laser-induced plasma

We present an approach in which laser ablation deposition is used to synthesize silver-nickel bimetallic nanoparticles. A variety of techniques, including scanning electron microscopy, energy disperse spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy have been used to characterize the morphology, composition and construction of synthesized bimetallic nanoparticles, respectively. The formation mechanism of bimetallic nanoparticles has been discussed. The Raman spectra of silver-nickel bimetallic nanoparticles have been analyzed. Time-of-flight mass spectrometry has been applied to directly measure intermediate species. The results indicate that diatomic AgNi is the most abundant species and suggest that the AgNi is the most stable intermediate which may play an important role in the synthesis process. Emission spectra demonstrate that the electron temperature is in the range of 6000-10000 K during the ablation process and increases with the laser power density. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.