Probing magnetic and gold nanoparticles by using MAClevers® as ultrasensitive sensors

Magnetic AFM probes known as MAClevers® were employed for sensing picogram amounts of magnetic nanoparticles, based on the cantilever frequency shifts resulting from the magnetically induced adsorption of mass. By using organothiol functionalized magnetic nanoparticles, this analytical strategy was successfully extended to the detection of gold nanoparticles, as confirmed by confocal Raman microscopy.