Fe₃O₄-nanoparticles within porous silicon: Magnetic and cytotoxicity characterization

The magnetic properties of porous silicon/Fe₃O₄ composites are investigated with respect to the adjustability of the blocking temperature along with an evaluation of any size-dependent changes in cytocompatibility. Fe₃O₄-nanoparticles have been infiltrated within mesoporous silicon, resulting in a system with tunable magnetic properties due to the matrix-morphology, the loading of the nanoparticles, and their size. In order to provide basic information regarding its suitability as a therapeutic platform, the cytotoxicity of these composites have been investigated by a trypan blue exclusion assay with respect to human embryonic kidney 293 cells, and the results compared with cell-only and known cytotoxic controls.