TABLE I.
Physico-chemical characterization methods for nanoparticles—practical examples with regard to protein corona investigations. AF4, asymmetrical flow field-flow fractionation; AFM, atomic force microscopy; AUC, analytical ultra-centrifugation; DCS, differential centrifugal sedimentation; DDLS, depolarized dynamic light scattering; DLS, dynamic light scattering; ELS, electrophoretic light scattering; FCS, fluorescence correlation spectroscopy; PTV, particle tracking velocimetry; SANS, small-angle neutron scattering; SAXS, small-angle x-ray scattering; SEC, size-exclusion chromatography; SEM, scanning electron microscopy; SLS, static light scattering; TEM, transmission electron microscopy; TRPS, tunable resistive pulse sensing.
| Characterization method | Information about | Practical examples—references | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scattering- and correlation-based | DLS, DDLS, SLS | Size | 28, 30, 64, 65, 80, and 176–182 |
| ELS | Zeta-potential | 57, 65, 71, 86, 97, 176, and 181 | |
| SAXS, SANS | Size | 181 and 183–186 | |
| FCS | Size | 75, 78, and 187–189 | |
| PTV | Size | 179 and 190 | |
| Microscopy-based | (Cryo-)TEM | Size, shape | 29, 65, 93, 119, 178, 180, 181, and 191–194 |
| SEM | 195 | ||
| AFM | 107, 196, and 197 | ||
| Fractionating | AF4 | Size distribution | 28, 30, 178, 180, and 198 |
| SEC | 51, 112, and 199 | ||
| AUC | 196 | ||
| DCS | 65, 132, 176, and 200 | ||
| Others | TRPS | Size, zeta-potential | 201–204 |