Optical sensing of metal tiny particles using ceria nanoparticles via fluorescence quenching technique

In this paper, ceria nanoparticles are studied as optical probe for different types of metallic tiny particles via fluorescence quenching technique. The synthesized ceria nanoparticles are formed to have charged oxygen vacancies which can be considered the receptors for metal tiny particles to be sensed or adsorbed. Under near-UV excitation, the visible fluorescent emission intensity is found to be reduced with increasing the concentration of tiny particles in the colloidal synthesized nanoparticles' solution. Stern-Volmer constants, which are considered as an indication for the sensitivity to quenchers, have been calculated for the used ceria nanoparticles. This work could be further helpful in many applications such as, sensitive optical sensors in both biomedical and environmental applications.