Pulsed-laser Irradiation to Suspended Carbon Particles in Aqueous Silver Nitrate Solution

When carbon suspended in water was irradiated repetitively by pulsed laser at 532 nm, the carbon particles were gradually consumed, being accompanied with morphology change. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) showed formation of seemingly entangled long fibrils and/or thin shells from the particles. In the copresence of silver ions, characteristic plasmon absorption peak appeared and formation of nanosized silver particles was evidenced by TEM. Under the typical fluence of 125 mJ·cm−2·pulse−1, the quantum yield of silver reduction was 10−3.