Room temperature synthesized solid solution AuFe nanoparticles and their transformation into Au/Fe Janus nanocrystals

Abstract

Solid solution AuFe nanoparticles were synthesized for the first time under ambient conditions by an adapted method previously established for the Fe₃O₄–Au core–shell morphology. These AuFe particles preserved the fcc structure of Au incorporated with paramagnetic Fe atoms. The metastable AuFe can be segregated by transformation into Janus Au/Fe particles with bcc Fe and fcc Au upon annealing. The ferromagnetic Fe was epitaxially grown on low index fcc Au planes. This preparation route delivers new perspective materials for magnetoplasmonics and biomedical applications and suggests the reconsideration of existing protocols for magnetite–gold core–shell synthesis.