Structure Formation of Magnetic Nanoparticles in AC Magnetic Fields

By reducing the size of magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) below a material-specific length scale they become magnetic single-domains, meaning that all atomic magnetic moments are preferentially aligned along the same direction. When MNPs are dispersed in a fluid they can be manipulated (i.e. moved around, rotated etc) by external magnetic fields. This makes them great candidates for various novel applications, especially in life science but also industrial applications. One of the most prominent biomedical applications of MNPs is magnetic hyperthermia.We propose to study the structure formation of MNPs samples in-situ in AC fields using SANS and a dedicated RF setup. With this study, we expect to gain a detailed understanding of the type and spatial extent of formed MNP aggregates and potential reversibility is therefore indispensable for real life application of magnetic hyperthermia.