{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,28]],"date-time":"2026-10-28T14:13:56Z","timestamp":1793196836995,"version":"4.5.0"},"reference-count":46,"publisher":"American Chemical Society (ACS)","issue":"5","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2015,1,16]],"date-time":"2015-01-16T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1421366400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":365,"URL":"https:\/\/pubs.acs.org\/page\/policy\/authorchoice_termsofuse.html"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2014,2,6]]},"abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:p>The development of new and improved photothermal contrast agents for the successful treatment of cancer (or other diseases) via plasmonic photothermal therapy (PPTT) is a crucial part of the application of nanotechnology in medicine. Gold nanorods (AuNRs) have been found to be the most effective photothermal contrast agents, both in vitro and in vivo. Therefore, determining the optimum AuNR size needed for applications in PPTT is of great interest. In the present work, we utilized theoretical calculations as well as experimental techniques in vitro to determine this optimum AuNR size by comparing plasmonic properties and the efficacy as photothermal contrast agents of three different sizes of AuNRs. Our theoretical calculations showed that the contribution of absorbance to the total extinction, the electric field, and the distance at which this field extends away from the nanoparticle surface all govern the effectiveness of the amount of heat these particles generate upon NIR laser irradiation. Comparing between three different AuNRs (38 \u00d7 11, 28 \u00d7 8, and 17 \u00d7 5 nm), we determined that the 28 \u00d7 8 nm AuNR is the most effective in plasmonic photothermal heat generation. These results encouraged us to carry out in vitro experiments to compare the PPTT efficacy of the different sized AuNRs. The 28 \u00d7 8 nm AuNR was found to be the most effective photothermal contrast agent for PPTT of human oral squamous cell carcinoma. This size AuNR has the best compromise between the total amount of light absorbed and the fraction of which is converted to heat. In addition, the distance at which the electric field extends from the particle surface is most ideal for this size AuNR, as it is sufficient to allow for coupling between the fields of adjacent particles in solution (i.e., particle aggregates), resulting in effective heating in solution.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1021\/jp409298f","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2014,1,16]],"date-time":"2014-01-16T16:25:44Z","timestamp":1389889544000},"page":"1319-1326","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":368,"title":["The Most\nEffective Gold Nanorod Size for Plasmonic\nPhotothermal Therapy: Theory and\n                    <i>In Vitro<\/i>\n                    Experiments"],"prefix":"10.1021","volume":"118","author":[{"given":"Megan A.","family":"Mackey","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Georgia Institute of Technology , , , ,","place":["Atlanta, Georgia, United States, 30332-0400"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Moustafa R. K.","family":"Ali","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Georgia Institute of Technology , , , ,","place":["Atlanta, Georgia, United States, 30332-0400"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Lauren A.","family":"Austin","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Georgia Institute of Technology , , , ,","place":["Atlanta, Georgia, United States, 30332-0400"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Rachel D.","family":"Near","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Georgia Institute of Technology , , , ,","place":["Atlanta, Georgia, United States, 30332-0400"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Mostafa A.","family":"El-Sayed","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Georgia Institute of Technology , , , ,","place":["Atlanta, Georgia, United States, 30332-0400"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"316","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2014,1,16]]},"reference":[{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"217","DOI":"10.1007\/s10103-007-0470-x","article-title":"Plasmonic Photothermal\nTherapy (PPTT) Using Gold Nanoparticles","volume":"23","author":"Huang","year":"2008","journal-title":"Lasers\nMed. Sci."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"257","DOI":"10.1021\/ar960016n","article-title":"Some Interesting\nProperties of Metals Confined in Time and Nanometer Space of Different\nShapes","volume":"34","author":"El-Sayed","year":"2001","journal-title":"Acc. Chem. Res."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"409","DOI":"10.1080\/01442350050034180","article-title":"Shape and Size Dependence of Radiative,\nNon-Radiative\nand Photothermal Properties of Gold Nanocrystals","volume":"19","author":"Link","year":"2000","journal-title":"Int. Rev. Phys. Chem."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"325","DOI":"10.1002\/smll.200400093","article-title":"Gold Nanoparticles\nare Taken Up by Human Cells But Do Not Cause Acute Cytotoxicity","volume":"1","author":"Connor","year":"2005","journal-title":"Small"},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1237","DOI":"10.1002\/cbic.200700165","article-title":"Molecular\nEffects of Uptake of Gold Nanoparticles in HeLa Cells","volume":"8","author":"Khan","year":"2007","journal-title":"ChemBioChem"},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"10644","DOI":"10.1021\/la0513712","article-title":"Biocompatibility of Gold Nanoparticles and Their Endocytotic\nFate Inside the Cellular Compartment: A Microscopic Overview","volume":"21","author":"Shukla","year":"2005","journal-title":"Langmuir"},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1578","DOI":"10.1021\/ar7002804","article-title":"Noble Metals on\nthe Nanoscale: Optical and Photothermal Properties and Some Applications\nin Imaging, Sensing, Biology, and Medicine","volume":"41","author":"Jain","year":"2008","journal-title":"Acc. Chem. Res."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3858","DOI":"10.1021\/cr1002547","article-title":"Optical\nStudies of Dynamics in Noble Metal Nanostructures","volume":"111","author":"Hartland","year":"2011","journal-title":"Chem. Rev."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"129","DOI":"10.1016\/j.canlet.2005.07.035","article-title":"Selective Laser Photo-Thermal Therapy\nof Epithelial Carcinoma Using Anti-EGFR Antibody Conjugated Gold Nanoparticles","volume":"239","author":"El-Sayed","year":"2006","journal-title":"Cancer Lett."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"333","DOI":"10.1148\/radiology.187.2.8475269","article-title":"Interstitial Hyperthermia of Colorectal Liver\nMetastases with a US-Guided Nd-YAG Laser with a Diffuser Tip: A Pilot\nClinical Study","volume":"187","author":"Nolsoe","year":"1993","journal-title":"Radiology"},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"171","DOI":"10.1016\/j.canlet.2004.02.004","article-title":"Photo-Thermal\nTumor Ablation in Mice Using Near Infrared-Absorbing Nanoparticles","volume":"209","author":"O\u2019Neal","year":"2004","journal-title":"Cancer Lett."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"57","DOI":"10.1016\/j.canlet.2008.04.026","article-title":"Gold Nanorod Assisted\nNear-Infrared Plasmonic Photothermal Therapy (PPTT) of Squamous Cell\nCarcinoma in Mice","volume":"269","author":"Dickerson","year":"2008","journal-title":"Cancer Lett."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1929","DOI":"10.1021\/nl070610y","article-title":"Near-Infrared Resonant\nNanoshells for Combined Optical\nImaging and Photothermal Cancer Therapy","volume":"7","author":"Gobin","year":"2007","journal-title":"Nano\nLett."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit14","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2740","DOI":"10.1039\/C1CS15237H","article-title":"The Golden\nAge: Gold Nanoparticles for Biomedicine","volume":"41","author":"Dreaden","year":"2012","journal-title":"Chem.\nSoc. Rev."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3391","DOI":"10.1039\/c0cs00180e","article-title":"Beating\nCancer in Multiple Ways Using Nanogold","volume":"40","author":"Dreaden","year":"2011","journal-title":"Chem.\nSoc. Rev."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"811","DOI":"10.1002\/smll.200902216","article-title":"Gold Nanocages as Photothermal\nTransducers for Cancer Treatment","volume":"6","author":"Chen","year":"2010","journal-title":"Small"},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3892","DOI":"10.1158\/0008-5472.CAN-08-4242","article-title":"Computationally\nGuided Photothermal Tumor Therapy Using Long-Circulating Gold Nanorod\nAntennas","volume":"69","author":"von Maltzahn","year":"2009","journal-title":"Cancer Res."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"13549","DOI":"10.1073\/pnas.2232479100","article-title":"Nanoshell-Mediated\nNear-Infrared Thermal Therapy of Tumors Under Magnetic Resonance Guidance","volume":"100","author":"Hirsch","year":"2003","journal-title":"Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"876","DOI":"10.1158\/1078-0432.CCR-08-1480","article-title":"Targeted Photothermal Ablation of\nMurine Melanomas with Melanocyte-Stimulating Hormone Analog-Conjugated\nHollow Gold Nanospheres","volume":"15","author":"Lu","year":"2009","journal-title":"Clin. Cancer Res."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"4023","DOI":"10.1016\/S0006-3495(03)75128-5","article-title":"Selective\nCell Targeting with Light-Absorbing Microparticles and Nanoparticles","volume":"84","author":"Pitsillides","year":"2003","journal-title":"Biophys. J."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"316","DOI":"10.1038\/86684","article-title":"Clearer\nVision for In Vivo Imaging","volume":"19","author":"Weissleder","year":"2001","journal-title":"Nat. Biotechnol."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit22","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1025","DOI":"10.1021\/cr030063a","article-title":"Chemistry and Properties\nof Nanocrystals of Different Shapes","volume":"105","author":"Burda","year":"2005","journal-title":"Chem. Rev."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"709","DOI":"10.1021\/nl050127s","article-title":"Immunotargeted\nNanoshells for Integrated Cancer Imaging and Therapy","volume":"5","author":"Loo","year":"2005","journal-title":"Nano Lett."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1318","DOI":"10.1021\/nl070345g","article-title":"Immuno Gold Nanocages with Tailored Optical Properties for Targeted\nPhotothermal Destruction of Cancer Cells","volume":"7","author":"Chen","year":"2007","journal-title":"Nano\nLett."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"13857","DOI":"10.1021\/jp0516846","article-title":"Anisotropic\nMetal Nanoparticles: Synthesis, Assembly, and Optical Applications","volume":"109","author":"Murphy","year":"2005","journal-title":"J. Phys. Chem. B"},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1957","DOI":"10.1021\/cm020732l","article-title":"Preparation and Growth Mechanism of Gold Nanorods (NRs)\nUsing Seed-Mediated Growth Method","volume":"15","author":"Nikoobakht","year":"2003","journal-title":"Chem. Mater."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1067","DOI":"10.1021\/ar7000974","article-title":"Synthesis\nof Silver Nanostructures\nwith Controlled Shapes and Properties","volume":"40","author":"Wiley","year":"2007","journal-title":"Acc.\nChem. Res."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2115","DOI":"10.1021\/ja057254a","article-title":"Cancer Cell Imaging\nand Photothermal Therapy in the Near-Infrared Region by Using Gold\nNanorods","volume":"128","author":"Huang","year":"2006","journal-title":"J. Am. Chem. Soc."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1318","DOI":"10.1021\/nl070345g","article-title":"Immuno Gold Nanocages with Tailored Optical Properties\nfor Targeted\nPhotothermal Destruction of Cancer Cells","volume":"7","author":"Chen","year":"2007","journal-title":"Nano\nLett."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"7238","DOI":"10.1021\/jp057170o","article-title":"Calculated Absorption\nand Scattering Properties of Gold Nanoparticles of Different Size,\nShape, and Composition: Applications in Biological Imaging and Biomedicine","volume":"110","author":"Jain","year":"2006","journal-title":"J. Phys. Chem. B"},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit31","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"20331","DOI":"10.1021\/jp054385p","article-title":"Dependence\nof the Enhanced Optical Scattering Efficiency\nRelative to that of Absorption for Gold Metal Nanorods on Aspect Ratio,\nSize, End-Cap Shape, and Medium Refractive Index","volume":"109","author":"Lee","year":"2005","journal-title":"J. Phys. Chem. B"},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit32","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1084","DOI":"10.1039\/b517615h","article-title":"Gold Nanostructures: Engineering\nTheir Plasmonic Properties for Biomedical Applications","volume":"35","author":"Hu","year":"2006","journal-title":"Chem. Soc. Rev."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit33","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"357","DOI":"10.1063\/1.1629280","article-title":"Electromagnetic\nFields Around Silver Nanoparticles\nand Dimers","volume":"120","author":"Hao","year":"2004","journal-title":"J. Chem. Phys."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit34","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"668","DOI":"10.1021\/jp026731y","article-title":"The Optical\nProperties\nof Metal Nanoparticles: The Influence of Size, Shape, and Dielectric\nEnvironment","volume":"107","author":"Kelly","year":"2003","journal-title":"J. Phys. Chem. B"},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit35","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"23019","DOI":"10.1021\/jp309272b","article-title":"Extinction\nvs Absorption: Which is\nthe Indicator of Plasmonic Field Strength for Silver Nanocubes?","volume":"116","author":"Near","year":"2012","journal-title":"J. Phys. Chem. C"},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit36","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"9807","DOI":"10.1021\/la301387p","article-title":"Synthesis and Optical Properties\nof Small Au Nanorods Using a Seedless Growth Technique","volume":"28","author":"Ali","year":"2012","journal-title":"Langmuir"},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit37","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"362","DOI":"10.1557\/mrs2005.99","article-title":"Playing\nWith Plasmons. Tuning the Optical Resonant Properties of Metallic\nNanoshells","volume":"30","author":"Halas","year":"2005","journal-title":"MRS Bull."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit38","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"6319","DOI":"10.1021\/jp7116714","article-title":"Hollow Gold-Silver Double-Shell Nanospheres:\nStructure,\nOptical Absorption, and Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering","volume":"112","author":"Olson","year":"2008","journal-title":"J. Phys. Chem. C"},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit39","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"641","DOI":"10.1002\/adma.200301639","article-title":"Metal Nanostructures with Hollow\nInteriors","volume":"15","author":"Sun","year":"2003","journal-title":"Adv. Mater."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit40","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"960","DOI":"10.1021\/nn8009008","article-title":"Using Spectroscopic Ellipsometry\nto Characterize and\nApply the Optical Constants of Hollow Gold Nanoparticles","volume":"3","author":"Wan","year":"2009","journal-title":"ACS Nano"},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit41","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1491","DOI":"10.1364\/JOSAA.11.001491","article-title":"Discrete-Dipole Approximation for Scattering Calculations","volume":"11","author":"Draine","year":"1994","journal-title":"J. Opt. Soc. Am. A"},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit42","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1198","DOI":"10.1364\/OL.16.001198","article-title":"Application of Fast-Fourier-Transform\nTechniques to the Discrete-Dipole Approximation","volume":"16","author":"Goodman","year":"1991","journal-title":"Opt. Lett."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit43","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","DOI":"10.1063\/1.2046633","article-title":"Multipolar\nExcitation in Triangular Nanoprisms","volume":"123","author":"Shuford","year":"2005","journal-title":"J. Chem.\nPhys."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit44","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"4880","DOI":"10.1002\/adma.200802789","article-title":"Gold Nanorods: From Synthesis and\nProperties to Biological and Biomedical Applications","volume":"21","author":"Huang","year":"2009","journal-title":"Adv. Mater."},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit45","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3990","DOI":"10.1021\/jp0570972","article-title":"Quantitation of Metal Content in the Silver-Assisted\nGrowth of Gold Nanorods","volume":"110","author":"Orendorff","year":"2006","journal-title":"J. Phys. Chem. B"},{"key":"2026090218473823700_cit46","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"4370","DOI":"10.1103\/PhysRevB.6.4370","article-title":"Optical Constants\nof Noble Metals","volume":"6","author":"Johnson","year":"1972","journal-title":"Phys. Rev. B"}],"container-title":["The Journal\nof Physical Chemistry B"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/pubs.acs.org\/doi\/pdf\/10.1021\/jp409298f","content-type":"application\/pdf","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"unspecified"},{"URL":"https:\/\/pubs.acs.org\/jpcbfk\/article-pdf\/118\/5\/1319\/9745271\/jp409298f.pdf","content-type":"application\/pdf","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"syndication"},{"URL":"https:\/\/pubs.acs.org\/jpcbfk\/article-pdf\/118\/5\/1319\/9745271\/jp409298f.pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,2]],"date-time":"2026-09-02T22:47:50Z","timestamp":1788389270000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/pubs.acs.org\/jpcbfk\/article\/118\/5\/1319\/912243\/The-Most-Effective-Gold-Nanorod-Size-for-Plasmonic"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2014,1,16]]},"references-count":46,"journal-issue":{"issue":"5","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2014,1,16]]},"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2014,2,6]]}},"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1021\/jp409298f","relation":{},"ISSN":["1520-6106","1520-5207"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1520-6106","type":"print"},{"value":"1520-5207","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2014,1,16]]}}}