Use of fluorescence signals generated by elastic scattering under monochromatic incident light for determining the scattering efficiencies of various plasmonic nanoparticles

We present a route that estimates the scattering/absorption characteristics of plasmonic nanoparticles by using fluorescence and UV-visible spectroscopy. Because elastic scattering of nanoparticles caused by a monochromatic incident light is reflected in fluorescence emission spectra when recording at the excitation wavelength, the scattering intensities at the excitation wavelength during fluorescence emission scans are used to compare the scattering characteristics of various plasmonic nanoparticles under conditions where the extinction values of all of the nanoparticles are kept constant at this wavelength. For the two excitation wavelengths (519 and 560 nm) we investigated, the scattering intensities of spherical gold nanoparticles increase with increasing size (15, 33, 51, 73, and 103 nm in diameter). These results are correlated with the nanoparticles’ scattering efficiencies (the ratios of scattering to the extinction cross-sections), which are theoretically calculated in the literature using Mie theory. Then, linear calibration equations at each wavelength are derived to estimate the scattering efficiencies of two Au nanorods, Au nanocages, and spherical Ag nanoparticles (15, 25, 37, and 62 nm). The values are very comparable with literature values. For various purposes such as biomedicine and optoelectronics, the present method could be beneficial to those who wish to easily compare and determine the scattering characteristics of various plasmonic nanoparticles at a certain wavelength by using commercially-available spectroscopic techniques.