10.1021/acsnano.7b00609.s001 Mythreyi Unni Mythreyi Unni Amanda M. Uhl Amanda M. Uhl Shehaab Savliwala Shehaab Savliwala Benjamin H. Savitzky Benjamin H. Savitzky Rohan Dhavalikar Rohan Dhavalikar Nicolas Garraud Nicolas Garraud David P Arnold David P Arnold Lena F. Kourkoutis Lena F. Kourkoutis Jennifer S. Andrew Jennifer S. Andrew Carlos Rinaldi Carlos Rinaldi Thermal Decomposition Synthesis of Iron Oxide Nanoparticles with Diminished Magnetic Dead Layer by Controlled Addition of Oxygen American Chemical Society 2017 Dead Layer decomposition synthesis postsynthesis oxidation crystal defects results address iron oxide nanoparticles iron oxide phases organometallic precursors Popular synthesis methods shape control Oxygen Decades Thermal Decomposition Synthesis Iron Oxide Nanoparticles single-crystalline iron oxide nanoparticles Controlled Addition reactive species magetic diameter distributions 2017-02-08 00:00:00 Journal contribution https://acs.figshare.com/articles/journal_contribution/Thermal_Decomposition_Synthesis_of_Iron_Oxide_Nanoparticles_with_Diminished_Magnetic_Dead_Layer_by_Controlled_Addition_of_Oxygen/4649950 Decades of research focused on size and shape control of iron oxide nanoparticles have led to methods of synthesis that afford excellent control over physical size and shape but comparatively poor control over magnetic properties. Popular synthesis methods based on thermal decomposition of organometallic precursors in the absence of oxygen have yielded particles with mixed iron oxide phases, crystal defects, and poorer than expected magnetic properties, including the existence of a thick “magnetically dead layer” experimentally evidenced by a magnetic diameter significantly smaller than the physical diameter. Here, we show how single-crystalline iron oxide nanoparticles with few defects and similar physical and magetic diameter distributions can be obtained by introducing molecular oxygen as one of the reactive species in the thermal decomposition synthesis. This is achieved without the need for any postsynthesis oxidation or thermal annealing. These results address a significant challenge in the synthesis of nanoparticles with predictable magnetic properties and could lead to advances in applications of magnetic nanoparticles.