Scientific Products
Marixia distributes selected materials from specialist scientific manufacturers. We coordinate international supply and work with trusted regional fulfilment partners to provide a straightforward and efficient route from quotation to delivery.
Grove Nanomaterials is a Swansea University spin-out specialising in colloidal nanoparticle technology. Its range includes red and blue gold colloids with different particle morphologies and surface chemistries for research in nanomaterials, optical sensing, bioassays, diagnostics, catalysis and surface chemistry.
Colloid Production
Grove gold colloids are produced using a physical deposition process rather than conventional wet-chemical reduction of gold salts. The nanoparticles are formed from metallic gold in the presence of the selected stabilising ligand, such as PVP, PEG or L-cysteine, before being dispersed into water.
This approach avoids the use of gold salts and chemical reducing agents, helping to minimise residual ionic species and synthesis by-products in the final dispersion. Grove colloids are also produced without CTAB, CTAC or other conventional surfactants, providing a cleaner starting material for biological conjugation, sensing, catalysis and other applications where surface chemistry is important.
Grove Gold-L-Cysteine Fluorescent Red ~4 nm
Unlike conventional plasmonic gold colloids, Grove Gold-L-Cysteine Fluorescent Red offers intrinsic red photoluminescence in a water-based, L-cysteine-functionalised material. It provides an accessible starting point for researchers investigating fluorescent sensing, optical assays, biointerfaces and other applications where the combination of gold and surface-bound amino-acid chemistry may be valuable.
Images and characterisation data are representative of an example production batch.
Technical details
Nanoparticle diameter: ~4 nm
Ligand: L-Cysteine
Solvent: Water
Solution colour: Milky white
Fluorescence colour: Red
Fluorescence wavelength: ~645 nm
Absorption peak: ~370 nm
Example Solution of Grove Gold-L-Cysteine Fluorescent Red Colloids in Ambient Light (left) and UV light (right).
Example Size Distribution of Grove Gold-L-Cysteine Fluorescent Red Colloids
Example Absorption and Photoluminescence Spectra of Grove Gold-L-Cysteine Fluorescent Red Colloids
Example TEM image of Grove Gold-L-Cysteine Fluorescent Red Colloids
Grove Gold-PVP Blue <220 nm
With its anisotropic platelet morphology, Grove Gold-PVP Blue offers a distinctive alternative to conventional spherical gold colloids. It provides an accessible starting point for researchers investigating plasmonic sensing, optical coupling, SERS substrate development and the influence of particle morphology on optical behaviour.
Images and characterisation data are representative of an example production batch.
Technical details
Platelet diameter: <220 nm
Ligand: Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)
Solvent: Water
Colour: Blue
Absorption peak: approximately 580 nm
Example Solution of Grove Gold-PVP Blue Colloid
Example Size Distribution of Grove Gold-PVP Blue Colloids
Example Absorption Spectrum of Grove Gold-PVP Blue Colloids
Example TEM image of Grove Gold-PVP Blue Colloid
Grove Gold-PVP Red ~10 nm
Grove Gold-PVP Red is a versatile starting material for researchers working with small gold nanoparticles. Its comparatively conventional optical response makes it useful for optical assay development, nanoparticle–molecule interaction studies and controlled comparisons with anisotropic or differently functionalised gold colloids.
Images and characterisation data are representative of an example production batch.
Technical details
Nanoparticle diameter: approximately 10 nm
Ligand: Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)
Solvent: Water
Colour: Red
Absorption peak: approximately 525 nm
Example Solution of Grove Gold-PVP Red Colloid
Example Size Distribution of Grove Gold-PVP Red Colloids
Example Absorption Spectrum of Grove Gold-PVP Red Colloids
Example TEM image of Grove Gold-PVP Red Colloids
Grove Gold-PEG Blue <220 nm
Grove Gold-PEG Blue combines anisotropic gold platelets with a PEG-stabilised aqueous surface. It is well suited to exploratory work involving plasmonic sensing, nanoparticle assembly, polymer-mediated interfaces and applications where both platelet morphology and PEG surface chemistry are of interest.
Images and characterisation data are representative of an example production batch.
Technical details
Platelet diameter: <220 nm
Ligand: Polyethylene Glycol (PEG)
Solvent: Water
Colour: Blue
Absorption peak: approximately 590 nm
Example Solution of Grove Gold-PEG Blue Colloid
Example Size Distribution of Grove Gold-PEG Blue Colloids
Example Absorption Spectrum of Grove Gold-PEG Blue Colloids
Example TEM image of Grove Gold-PEG Blue Colloid
