Doped Plasmonic Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles With Near-Infrared Absorption For Antitumor Activity

Plasmonic nanoparticles (NPs) have been extensively investigated as active materials for application in the optoelectronics, photocatalysis, and electrochemistry fields. In particular, doped metal oxides have attracted significant interest because of their optical and electrical properties. In this study, we investigated the influence of aluminum, gallium, and indium on the doping process of zinc oxide (ZnO) NPs. Physicochemical characterization revealed that, upon doping, ZnO NPs exhibited enhanced optoelectronic properties, including absorption in the near-infrared region. Lattice defects, such as vacancies and interstitials in the ZnO NPs crystal lattice, were also introduced by doping, changing the optical properties, and generating emission in the green-yellow, blue-violet, and orange-red band regions. We also investigated the ability of the ZnO NPs to induce cell death in human tumor cell lines and in a healthy cell line in vitro.