Silica nanoparticles are versatile silicon dioxide particles whose size, porosity, surface chemistry, and architecture can be engineered for a wide range of research and product-development applications. Solid silica provides a stable, highly functionalizable particle platform, while mesoporous silica adds tunable internal pore structures for loading, adsorption, separation, and controlled-release applications.
Silica can also be deposited as a shell around metal, metal oxide, and other nanoparticle cores, combining the properties of the underlying material with the surface chemistry and physical separation provided by silica. Learn more about silica nanoparticle physical properties and silica surface chemistry.
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Explore solid and mesoporous silica nanoparticles across a range of particle sizes, pore structures, surface chemistries, and formats.
Silica Nanoparticle Applications
Silica nanoparticles combine controllable particle dimensions, versatile surface chemistry, and tunable porosity. These properties support applications ranging from drug delivery and biomolecular separation to optical materials, catalysis, coatings, and reference standards.
Drug Delivery & Biomedical Research
Mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) provide high internal surface area and tunable pores that can accommodate a range of molecular payloads. Particle size, pore size and structure, surface chemistry, and formulation can be selected around the properties of the molecule being loaded and the intended release behavior.
Solid and porous silica particles can also be functionalized with amines, polymers, biomolecules, and other surface chemistries to support biological research and nanoparticle-enabled delivery strategies. For a broader overview, see Nanoparticles for Drug Delivery.
Optical Materials & Reference Standards
Precisely controlled silica particles can provide well-defined size, morphology, and refractive-index contrast for optical materials, scattering studies, coatings, and instrument development. Silica shells can also separate plasmonic nanoparticles from their surrounding environment or neighboring particles while providing an interface for additional surface modification.
These properties have made silica useful in optical engineering and measurement applications, including custom reference materials for instrument calibration. Explore Nanomaterials for Optical Engineering and Reference Material Nanoparticles.
Catalysis, Separation & Advanced Materials
Silica surface chemistry and porosity can be engineered for adsorption, separation, catalysis, coatings, and integration into composite materials. Mesoporous structures provide accessible internal surfaces that can be modified independently or alongside the external particle surface, while solid silica provides a robust platform for size-controlled particles and surface functionalization.
Silica surfaces can also support biomolecular separation strategies such as DNA binding and can serve as an interface between a functional nanoparticle core and the surrounding formulation or matrix. See Silica Nanoparticle Applications for additional examples.
Why Choose nanoComposix Silica Nanoparticles?
Extensive Characterization Data
Silica nanoparticle products are supplied with batch-specific characterization data to help researchers understand the material they are using and compare performance over time. Depending on the particle platform, characterization may include transmission electron microscopy (TEM), dynamic light scattering (DLS), zeta potential, pore-size or surface-area measurements, solution properties, and other relevant measurements.
Batch-specific Certificates of Analysis provide representative characterization data for the supplied material rather than relying only on nominal particle specifications.
Controlled Particle Size & Porosity
Silica synthesis provides substantial control over particle dimensions and architecture. Solid silica nanospheres can be produced with controlled particle size and narrow size distributions, while mesoporous silica can be engineered with different pore sizes and pore organizations to support loading, adsorption, or release requirements.
For mesoporous materials, the appropriate pore structure depends on the payload or molecule of interest. Use the Mesoporous Silica Selection Guide to compare current pore architectures.
Versatile Surface Chemistry
Silica surfaces contain silanol groups that provide a flexible starting point for further modification. Silane chemistry can introduce amines and other functional groups, alter hydrophilicity or solvent compatibility, or provide attachment points for polymers, proteins, dyes, and other molecules.
Standard surface options vary by particle platform and include silanol and aminated surfaces. For additional information about silica coatings and functionalization, see Silica Surface Chemistry.
Flexible Formulation Options
Silica nanoparticle formulations vary by particle size, surface chemistry, and architecture. Depending on the product, particles may be supplied as dispersions in water or ethanol or as dried materials for greater flexibility in downstream concentration and solvent selection.
Always refer to the individual product page and batch-specific Certificate of Analysis for the formulation supplied with a specific material.
Technical Support & Custom Development
Our nanoparticle scientists can help with particle size, pore architecture, surface chemistry, formulation, silica shelling, characterization, and integration into downstream applications. If an off-the-shelf material does not meet your requirements, custom nanoparticle development can be used to evaluate alternative silica particle designs, surfaces, pores, shells, and formulations.
Silica Nanoparticle Types & Selection
Silica can be engineered as a solid particle, a porous carrier, or a shell around another nanoparticle core. The best architecture depends on which physical or functional properties the application requires.
Examples of silica architectures produced by nanoComposix, including hollow and solid silica particles, mesoporous structures, and silica-coated nanoparticle cores.
| Particle Type | Useful Characteristics | Key Selection Considerations |
|---|---|---|
| Solid Silica | Controlled particle size, relatively low porosity, versatile surface chemistry, well-defined morphology | Particle diameter, surface functionality, solvent, concentration, downstream integration |
| Mesoporous Silica | High internal surface area, tunable pore diameter and architecture, payload loading, surface modification | Pore size, pore structure, payload dimensions, particle size, surface chemistry, release requirements |
| Silica-Shelled Nanoparticles | Combines a functional nanoparticle core with a silica interface for physical separation and surface modification | Core material, silica thickness, porosity, surface functionality, effect on optical or magnetic properties |
For standard spherical particles, explore Solid Silica. For porous architectures, explore Mesoporous Silica or use the MSN Selection Guide to compare pore structures.
How Silica Nanoparticles Are Made
Many colloidal silica nanoparticles are produced through sol-gel chemistry based on the Stöber method. Alkoxysilane precursors such as tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) undergo hydrolysis and condensation to form an amorphous network of silicon and oxygen. Reaction conditions including precursor concentration, water content, catalyst concentration, solvent, and temperature can be adjusted to control nucleation and particle growth.
The same general chemistry can be adapted to grow silica around another nanoparticle core. By controlling silica growth conditions, shell thickness and surface chemistry can be adjusted around the requirements of the underlying material and application. Learn more about silica-coated nanoparticle surfaces.
Mesoporous silica adds templating molecules during synthesis to create an organized pore network. After the template is removed, the resulting internal surface and pore architecture can be used for loading, adsorption, separation, catalysis, and other applications. See Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles for a deeper discussion of pore size, structure, surface chemistry, and synthesis.
Explore more about silica nanoparticles