US Patent 8080183 - Nanoparticle assembly with molecular springs

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/8080183.html

This patent from Ohio University teaches a nanoparticle assembly used as a luminescent tag with improved signal-to-noise ratio compared to semiconductor nanocrystals (i.e. quantum dots). Claim 1 reads:

1. A dynamic nanoparticle structure comprising:

a first nanoparticle;

a second nanoparticle; and

a molecular spring, and wherein:

the first nanoparticle is connected to the second nanoparticle by the molecular spring;

the first nanoparticle comprises a metallic nanoparticle;

the second nanoparticle comprises a semiconducting nanoparticle, the semiconducting nanoparticle selected from the group consisting of Cd, CdS, CdSe, CdTe, Si, ZnO and combinations thereof; and

the molecular spring comprises PEG and derivatives thereof.