Pd–Ni–P metallic glass nanoparticles for nonenzymatic glucose sensing
Yu Lou, Zhongzheng Yao, Shu Fu, Sinan Liu, Xindong Zhu, Huang Wen, Min Dong, Jianrong Zeng, He Lin, He Zhu, Si Lan
Abstract
Metallic glass nanoparticles hold great promise as nonenzymatic glucose sensors due to their rich low-coordinated active sites and high biocompatibility. However, their non-periodic atomic structure and unclear structure-property relationship pose significant challenges for realizing and optimizing their sensing performance. In this work, Pd–Ni–P metallic glass nanoparticles with variable compositions were successfully prepared as nonenzymatic glucose sensors via a laser-evaporated inert-gas condensation method. The electrochemical tests show that the sensor based on Pd41·25Ni41·25P17.5 nanoparticles shows a wide linear detection range (0.003–1.31 mM), high sensitivity (516 μA mM−1 cm−2), and high stability (∼97.8% current retention after 1000 cycles). Local structural investigations using synchrotron pair distribution function and high-resolution microscopic techniques reveal a strong structural correlation within short-to medium-range orders in the Pd41·25Ni41·25P17.5 nanoparticles, which can be well retained after electrochemical cycling. These atomic-scale structural characteristics might be responsible for the high sensing performance. This study demonstrates the high applicability of Pd–Ni–P metallic glass nanoparticles as sensitive and stable non-enzymatic glucose sensors.