Mass-spectrometric investigations of the synthesis of silver nanoparticles via electrolysis

The synthesis of silver nanoparticles during electrolysis of NaCl solutions and silver electrodes was controlled by using UV absorption and mass-spectrometric methods. For mass-spectrometric measurements, the laser desorption/ionization method and a time of flight (TOF) spectrometer were employed. Results of investigations show the possibility of formation of small silver nanoparticles (of the cluster size ⩽7) or their compounds.