Synthesis, Characterization and Optical Properties of ZnO Nanoparticles Doped with Er and Yb

Structural characterization, stability, and cytocompatibility study of chitosan BaTiO3@ZnO:Er heterostructures

New imaging agents are required in cancer diagnosis to enhance the diagnostic accuracy, classification, and therapeutic management of tumors. Nanomaterials have emerged as a promising alternative to developing new nanostructures with imaging applications. In this study, a heterostructure based on barium titanate (BT), zinc oxide (ZnO), and erbium (Er) was prepared and coated with Chitosan (CS) to investigate their stability and compatibility with biological systems. The structure, particle morphology, luminescence properties, stability, and cytotoxicity of different nanoparticles (NPs) were assessed. The results demonstrated the formation of a [BT@ZnO:Er]-CS heterostructure, which is consistent with the relative intensities and positions of peaks in the X-ray diffraction (XRD) with an average crystallite size of ~76 nm. The electrokinetic measurement results indicate that the coated NPs are the most stable and have an average size close to 200 nm when the pH is between 3 and 5. Finally, we presented a cytotoxicity study of naked and CS-coated NPs. The results indicate that naked NPs exhibit varying cellular toxicity, as indicated by decreased cell viability, morphological changes, and an increase in an apoptotic marker. The CS-coated NPs prevented the cytotoxic effect of the naked NPs, demonstrating the significance of CS as a stabilizing agent.

Effective role of Rb doping in controlling crystallization, crystal imperfections, microstructural, and morphological features of ZnO-NPs synthesized by Sol-Gel way

This article is dedicated to synthesizing pure ZnO and Rb-doped ZnO nanoparticles, RbxZn1-xO-NPs (x=0.0, 0.02, 0.04, 0.06 mol) using sol-gel technology. Synthesized samples have been characterized and studied utilizing X-ray...