X-ray Excited Optical Luminescence (XEOL) -detected XAFS investigation of DNA stabilized silver nanoclusters in aqueous solution

This proposal aims to employ X-ray excited Optical Luminescence (XEOL)-detected X-ray Absorption Fine Structure (XAFS) to explore the structure, environment, and electronic properties of a series of DNA-stabilized silver nanoclusters (DNA-AgNCs). By recording XEOL-XAFS simultaneously with conventional X-ray fluorescence XAFS, we will achieve enhanced selectivity and facilitate the structural determination of luminescent clusters in both their ground and excited states, as demonstrated in previous work on Ag-exchanged zeolite-stabilized clusters. This investigation will deepen our understanding of the luminescent behavior of DNA-AgNCs in solution and how their optical features are influenced by the DNA sequence. Indeed, our goal is to identify the key parameters that affect the clusters' spectroscopic properties, enabling the development of a rational synthetic protocol for designing tailored DNA-AgNCs for potential bioimaging applications.