Staff directory
Alejandro Gómez Roca
Senior Researcher
RYC 2019
alejandro.gomez(ELIMINAR)@icn2.cat
Magnetic Nanostructures
- ORCID: 0000-0001-6610-9197
Publications
2024
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A Simple In Situ Marker Guiding Shape-Controlled Synthesis of Iron Oxide Nanoparticles
Llacer-Wintle, Joaquin; Hertle, Lukas; Ziegler, Salomon; Pellicer, Eva; Roca, Alejandro G; Nogues, Josep; Puigmarti-Luis, Josep; Nelson, Bradley J; Chen, Xiang-Zhong; Pane, Salvador Advanced Functional Materials; 2024. 10.1002/adfm.202404113.
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Elucidating the Lithiation Process in Fe3-δO4 Nanoparticles by Correlating Magnetic and Structural Properties
Ulusoy, Seda; Feygenson, Mikhail; Thersleff, Thomas; Uusimaeki, Toni; Valvo, Mario; Roca, Alejandro G; Nogues, Josep; Svedlindh, Peter; Salazar-Alvarez, German Acs Applied Materials & Interfaces; 16 (12): 14799 - 14808. 2024. 10.1021/acsami.3c18334.
2023
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Elucidating Individual Magnetic Contributions in Bi-Magnetic Fe3O4/Mn3O4 Core/Shell Nanoparticles by Polarized Powder Neutron Diffraction
Golosovsky, IV; Kibalin, IA; Gukasov, A; Roca, AG; López-Ortega, A; Estrader, M; Vasilakaki, M; Trohidou, KN; Hansen, TC; Puente-Orench, I; Lelièvre-Berna, E; Nogués, J Small Methods; 7 (10): e2201725. 2023. 10.1002/smtd.202201725. IF: 12.400
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Iron oxide nanoparticles (Fe3O4, γ-Fe2O3 and FeO) as photothermal heat mediators in the first, second and third biological windows
Roca, AG; Lopez-Barbera, JF; Lafuente, A; Özel, F; Fantechi, E; Muro-Cruces, J; Hémadi, M; Sepulveda, B; Nogues, J Physics Reports; 1043: 1 - 35. 2023. 10.1016/j.physrep.2023.10.003. IF: 29.900
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Modular Drug-Loaded Nanocapsules with Metal Dome Layers as a Platform for Obtaining Synergistic Therapeutic Biological Activities
Fluksman, A; Lafuente, A; Braunstein, R; Steinberg, E; Friedman, N; Yekhin, Z; Roca, AG; Nogues, J; Hazan, R; Sepulveda, B; Benny, O Acs Applied Materials & Interfaces; 15 (43): 50330 - 50343. 2023. 10.1021/acsami.3c07188. IF: 9.500
2021
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Direct Evidence of a Graded Magnetic Interface in Bimagnetic Core/Shell Nanoparticles Using Electron Magnetic Circular Dichroism (EMCD)
Del-Pozo-Bueno D., Varela M., Estrader M., López-Ortega A., Roca A.G., Nogués J., Peiró F., Estradé S. Nano Letters; 21 (16): 6923 - 6930. 2021. 10.1021/acs.nanolett.1c02089. IF: 11.189
Interfaces play a crucial role in composite magnetic materials and particularly in bimagnetic core/shell nanoparticles. However, resolving the microscopic magnetic structure of these nanoparticles is rather complex. Here, we investigate the local magnetization of antiferromagnetic/ferrimagnetic FeO/Fe3O4 core/shell nanocubes by electron magnetic circular dichroism (EMCD). The electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) compositional analysis of the samples shows the presence of an oxidation gradient at the interface between the FeO core and the Fe3O4 shell. The EMCD measurements show that the nanoparticles are composed of four different zones with distinct magnetic moment in a concentric, onion-type, structure. These magnetic areas correlate spatially with the oxidation and composition gradient with the magnetic moment being largest at the surface and decreasing toward the core. The results show that the combination of EELS compositional mapping and EMCD can provide very valuable information on the inner magnetic structure and its correlation to the microstructure of magnetic nanoparticles. © 2021 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.
2019
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Design strategies for shape-controlled magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles
Roca A.G., Gutiérrez L., Gavilán H., Fortes Brollo M.E., Veintemillas-Verdaguer S., Morales M.D.P. Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews; 138: 68 - 104. 2019. 10.1016/j.addr.2018.12.008. IF: 15.519
Ferrimagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (magnetite or maghemite) have been the subject of an intense research, not only for fundamental research but also for their potentiality in a widespread number of practical applications. Most of these studies were focused on nanoparticles with spherical morphology but recently there is an emerging interest on anisometric nanoparticles. This review is focused on the synthesis routes for the production of uniform anisometric magnetite/maghemite nanoparticles with different morphologies like cubes, rods, disks, flowers and many others, such as hollow spheres, worms, stars or tetrapods. We critically analyzed those procedures, detected the key parameters governing the production of these nanoparticles with particular emphasis in the role of the ligands in the final nanoparticle morphology. The main structural and magnetic features as well as the nanotoxicity as a function of the nanoparticle morphology are also described. Finally, the impact of each morphology on the different biomedical applications (hyperthermia, magnetic resonance imaging and drug delivery) are analysed in detail. We would like to dedicate this work to Professor Carlos J. Serna, Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Madrid, ICMM/CSIC, for his outstanding contribution in the field of monodispersed colloids and iron oxide nanoparticles. We would like to express our gratitude for all these years of support and inspiration on the occasion of his retirement. © 2018 Elsevier B.V.
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Precise Size Control of the Growth of Fe3O4 Nanocubes over a Wide Size Range Using a Rationally Designed One-Pot Synthesis
Muro-Cruces J., Roca A.G., López-Ortega A., Fantechi E., Del-Pozo-Bueno D., Estradé S., Peiró F., Sepúlveda B., Pineider F., Sangregorio C., Nogues J. ACS Nano; 2019. 10.1021/acsnano.9b01281. IF: 13.903
The physicochemical properties of spinel oxide magnetic nanoparticles depend critically on both their size and shape. In particular, spinel oxide nanocrystals with cubic morphology have shown superior properties in comparison to their spherical counterparts in a variety of fields, like, for example, biomedicine. Therefore, having an accurate control over the nanoparticle shape and size, while preserving the crystallinity, becomes crucial for many applications. However, despite the increasing interest in spinel oxide nanocubes there are relatively few studies on this morphology due to the difficulty to synthesize perfectly defined cubic nanostructures, especially below 20 nm. Here we present a rationally designed synthesis pathway based on the thermal decomposition of iron(III) acetylacetonate to obtain high quality nanocubes over a wide range of sizes. This pathway enables the synthesis of monodisperse Fe3O4 nanocubes with edge length in the 9-80 nm range, with excellent cubic morphology and high crystallinity by only minor adjustments in the synthesis parameters. The accurate size control provides evidence that even 1-2 nm size variations can be critical in determining the functional properties, for example, for improved nuclear magnetic resonance T2 contrast or enhanced magnetic hyperthermia. The rationale behind the changes introduced in the synthesis procedure (e.g., the use of three solvents or adding Na-oleate) is carefully discussed. The versatility of this synthesis route is demonstrated by expanding its capability to grow other spinel oxides such as Co-ferrites, Mn-ferrites, and Mn3O4 of different sizes. The simplicity and adaptability of this synthesis scheme may ease the development of complex oxide nanocubes for a wide variety of applications. © 2019 American Chemical Society.
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Zinc blende and wurtzite CoO polymorph nanoparticles: Rational synthesis and commensurate and incommensurate magnetic order
Golosovsky I.V., Estrader M., López-Ortega A., Roca A.G., López-Conesa L., Del Corro E., Estradé S., Peiró F., Puente-Orench I., Nogués J. Applied Materials Today; 16: 322 - 331. 2019. 10.1016/j.apmt.2019.06.005. IF: 8.013
On the nanoscale, CoO can have different polymorph crystal structures, zinc blende and wurtzite, apart from rock salt, which is the stable one in bulk. However, the magnetic structures of the zinc blende and wurtzite phases remain virtually unexplored. Here we discuss some of the main parameters controlling the growth of the CoO wurtzite and zinc blende polymorphs by thermal decomposition of cobalt (II) acetylacetonate. In addition, we present a detailed neutron diffraction study of oxygen deficient CoO (CoO0.70–0.75) nanoparticles with zinc blende (∼15 nm) and wurtzite (∼30 nm) crystal structures to unravel their magnetic order and its temperature evolution. The magnetic order of the zinc blende nanoparticles is antiferromagnetic and appears at the Néel temperature TN ∼ 203 K. It corresponds to the 3rd type of magnetic ordering in a face-centered cubic lattice with magnetic moments aligned along a cube edge. The magnetic structure in the wurtzite nanoparticles turned out to be rather complex with two perpendicular components. One component is incommensurate, of the longitudinal spin wave type, with the magnetic moments confined in the ab-plane. In the perpendicular direction, this magnetic order is uncorrelated, forming quasi-two-dimensional magnetic layers. The component of the magnetic moment, aligned along the hexagonal axis, is commensurate and corresponds to the antiferromagnetic order known as the 2nd type in a wurtzite structure. The Néel temperature of wurtzite phase is estimated to be ∼109 K. The temperature dependence of the magnetic reflections confirms the reduced dimensionality of the incommensurate magnetic order. Incommensurate magnetic structures in nanoparticles are an unusual phenomenon and in the case of wurtzite CoO it is probably caused by structural defects (e.g., vacancies, strains and stacking faults). © 2019 Elsevier Ltd
2018
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Atomic-Scale Determination of Cation Inversion in Spinel-Based Oxide Nanoparticles
Torruella P., Ruiz-Caridad A., Walls M., Roca A.G., López-Ortega A., Blanco-Portals J., López-Conesa L., Nogués J., Peiró F., Estradé S. Nano Letters; 18 (9): 5854 - 5861. 2018. 10.1021/acs.nanolett.8b02524. IF: 12.080
The atomic structure of nanoparticles can be easily determined by transmission electron microscopy. However, obtaining atomic-resolution chemical information about the individual atomic columns is a rather challenging endeavor. Here, crystalline monodispersed spinel Fe3O4/Mn3O4 core-shell nanoparticles have been thoroughly characterized in a high-resolution scanning transmission electron microscope. Electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) measurements performed with atomic resolution allow the direct mapping of the Mn2+/Mn3+ ions in the shell and the Fe2+/Fe3+ in the core structure. This enables a precise understanding of the core-shell interface and of the cation distribution in the crystalline lattice of the nanoparticles. Considering how the different oxidation states of transition metals are reflected in EELS, two methods of performing a local evaluation of the cation inversion in spinel lattices are introduced. Both methods allow the determination of the inversion parameter in the iron oxide core and manganese oxide shell, as well as detecting spatial variations in this parameter, with atomic resolution. X-ray absorption measurements on the whole sample confirm the presence of cation inversion. These results present a significant advance toward a better correlation of the structural and functional properties of nanostructured spinel oxides. © 2018 American Chemical Society.
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Combining X-Ray Whole Powder Pattern Modeling, Rietveld and Pair Distribution Function Analyses as a Novel Bulk Approach to Study Interfaces in Heteronanostructures: Oxidation Front in FeO/Fe3O4 Core/Shell Nanoparticles as a Case Study
Ichikawa R.U., Roca A.G., López-Ortega A., Estrader M., Peral I., Turrillas X., Nogués J. Small; 14 (30, 1800804) 2018. 10.1002/smll.201800804. IF: 9.598
Understanding the microstructure in heterostructured nanoparticles is crucial to harnessing their properties. Although microscopy is ideal for this purpose, it allows for the analysis of only a few nanoparticles. Thus, there is a need for structural methods that take the whole sample into account. Here, a novel bulk-approach based on the combined analysis of synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction with whole powder pattern modeling, Rietveld and pair distribution function is presented. The microstructural temporal evolution of FeO/Fe3O4 core/shell nanocubes is studied at different time intervals. The results indicate that a two-phase approach (FeO and Fe3O4) is not sufficient to successfully fit the data and two additional interface phases (FeO and Fe3O4) are needed to obtain satisfactory fits, i.e., an onion-type structure. The analysis shows that the Fe3O4 phases grow to some extent (≈1 nm) at the expense of the FeO core. Moreover, the FeO core progressively changes its stoichiometry to accommodate more oxygen. The temporal evolution of the parameters indicates that the structure of the FeO/Fe3O4 nanocubes is rather stable, although the exact interface structure slightly evolves with time. This approach paves the way for average studies of interfaces in different kinds of heterostructured nanoparticles, particularly in cases where spectroscopic methods have some limitations. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim
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Magnetically amplified photothermal therapies and multimodal imaging with magneto-plasmonic nanodomes
Li Z., Aranda-Ramos A., Güell-Grau P., Tajada J.L., Pou-Macayo L., Lope Piedrafita S., Pi F., G. Roca A., Baró M.D., Sort J., Nogués C., Nogués J., Sepúlveda B. Applied Materials Today; 12: 430 - 440. 2018. 10.1016/j.apmt.2018.07.008. IF: 0.000
Nanotherapies require new ways for controlling and improving the delivery of the therapeutic agents to the site of action to maximize their efficacy and minimize the side effects. This control is particularly relevant in photothermal treatments to reduce the required light intensity and amount of injected nanoparticles, and to minimize necrotic cell deaths. Here we present a novel concept for multifunctional nanobiomedical agents: magneto-plasmonic (MP) nanodomes for magnetically guided and amplified photothermal therapies and as contrast agents for multimodal imaging. The MP nanodomes are composed of a Fe/Au bilayer semi-shell deposited on a 100 nm diameter fluorescent polystyrene nanosphere, which gather a unique combination of straightforward functionalization, high colloidal stability, very strong ferromagnetic behavior and intense optical absorption efficiency in the near infrared. We show that the photothermal conversion efficiency of the Fe/Au nanodomes with high Fe ratios is substantially larger than pure plasmonic Au nanodomes and the state-of-art plasmonic nanoheaters, i.e. Au nanorods and nanoshells, by merging strong optical absorption, minimized scattering and low optical anisotropy. Remarkably, the effective magnetophoretic concentration of the Fe/Au nanodomes at the illumination region enables large local increase of the optically induced temperature rise. The Fe semishell also provides very intense T2 contrast in nuclear magnetic resonance, which is at least 15-fold larger per particle than commercial iron oxide contrast agents. Moreover, the fluorescent polystyrene nanosphere and the Au semishell integrate valuable fluorescent and X-ray contrasts, respectively, which we have used to assess the nanodomes internalization by cancer cells. The MP nanodomes are nontoxic to cells even in the case of magnetophoretic local enrichment with initially high particle concentration (100 μg/mL). Remarkably, we demonstrate amplified local photothermal treatments by the magnetic enrichment of the nanodomes at the illumination region, which enables reaching nearly 100% reduction of cell viability with low particle concentration (10 μg/mL) and mild NIR laser intensity (5 W/cm2). These results highlight the high potential of MP nanodomes for magnetically guided and amplified photothermal therapies. © 2018 Elsevier Ltd
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Unravelling the Elusive Antiferromagnetic Order in Wurtzite and Zinc Blende CoO Polymorph Nanoparticles
Roca A.G., Golosovsky I.V., Winkler E., López-Ortega A., Estrader M., Zysler R.D., Baró M.D., Nogués J. Small; 14 (15, 1703963) 2018. 10.1002/smll.201703963. IF: 9.598
Although cubic rock salt-CoO has been extensively studied, the magnetic properties of the main nanoscale CoO polymorphs (hexagonal wurtzite and cubic zinc blende structures) are rather poorly understood. Here, a detailed magnetic and neutron diffraction study on zinc blende and wurtzite CoO nanoparticles is presented. The zinc blende-CoO phase is antiferromagnetic with a 3rd type structure in a face-centered cubic lattice and a Néel temperature of TN (zinc-blende) ≈225 K. Wurtzite-CoO also presents an antiferromagnetic order, TN (wurtzite) ≈109 K, although much more complex, with a 2nd type order along the c-axis but an incommensurate order along the y-axis. Importantly, the overall magnetic properties are overwhelmed by the uncompensated spins, which confer the system a ferromagnetic-like behavior even at room temperature. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim