An iron target submerged in three different solvents (distilled water,
absolute ethanol and acetone) was laser ablated to study the influence of solvents
on the size and composition of the nanoparticles produced. A Nd:YAG laser
ablation machine was operated at wavelength 1064 nm, pulse power 90 W, pulse
frequency 30 kHz and pulse duration 3 ns. Nanoparticles were characterized by
UV-Vis spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). TEM revealed
that spherical nanoparticles, mainly FeO, were observed in all solvents. Fe2O3
was found only in distilled water. Well-dispersed nanoparticles with mono-modal
distribution and a mean particle size of ca. 20 nm were produced only in the
acetone. It is believed that higher dipole moment of the solvents should lead to
an inhibition of growth or aggregation of nanoparticles, and hence the smallest
nanoparticles were observed with the acetone.