Optical wavelength dependence of photoacoustic signal of gold nanofluid

Abstract

We investigate the optical wavelength dependence of the photoacoustic (PA) signal, detected with bandwidth (BW) in the MHz range, of gold nanospheres (NSs) immersed in water upon illumination with ns laser pulses. We compare the wavelength dependence of the PA signal (within the MHz BW) with the one of the optical absorption coefficient as determined from optical transmission measurements. Thermal boundary conductance (TBC) at the gold-water interface is taken into account, as well as the temperature dependence of the thermal expansion coefficient of water. The effects of NS size and laser pulse duration on the PA signal are also explored. The PA signal is investigated with an opto-thermo-acoustic model considering light absorption in gold NS and in a surrounding water shell.

Keywords

• Photoacoustic effect
• Heat transfer
• Absorption coefficient
• Non-linearity
• Kapitza resistance
• Nanoparticles