Sub-10 nm Iron-Oxide Nanospheres and Nanocubes for Hyperthermia Therapy

Magnetic hyperthermia offers promising potential for supplementary cancer therapy. By applying an alternating magnetic field, magnetic nanoparticles generate heat that can raise the temperature of target cells to a point at which they begin to break down. In this research, nanospheres and nanocubes less than 10 nm in size were synthesized and characterized for use in hyperthermia treatment. It was found that these two shapes of superparamagnetic particles exhibit distinct properties below their blocking temperature—namely, the nanocubes display strong exchange bias not present in the nanospheres. This exchange bias, paired with an increase in shape anisotropy, resulted in a higher Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) for nanocubes compared to nanospheres. Finally, measurements on SAR in different mediums were carried out, showing that synthesized nanocubes are superior in hyperthermia treatments compared to nanospheres.