Optical limiting of silver-containing nanoparticles

Silver and silver sulfide nanoparticles in stabilized suspensions, prepared via a supercritical fluid processing technique under various conditions, were evaluated systematically for optical limiting toward the second harmonic of a Q-switched Nd:YAG laser. These nanoparticle samples had very different average particle sizes and size distributions, and their suspensions were protected by different stabilization agents. However, the results show that all these variables have little effect on the optical limiting performance of the nanoparticles, suggesting that the observed limiting responses are likely dominated by a nonlinear absorption mechanism. The implication of the performance stability demonstrated by these optical limiting nanomaterials to their potential applications is discussed.