A facile approach to prepare silica hybrid, spin-crossover water-soluble nanoparticles as potential candidates for thermally responsive MRI agents

Abstract

A reverse micelle method was used for the synthesis of water-soluble silica hybrid, spin-crossover (SCO) nanoparticles (NPs). MRI experiments provided temperature dependent <i>T</i>2 values, indicating their potential use as smart MRI agents, while lyophilization of NP dispersions in water yielded powders with a preserved but modified thermal hysteretic magnetic profile.