Rare earth orthoferrite LnFeO3 nanoparticles for bioimaging

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has emerged as one of the most powerful clinical imaging tools because of its superb spatial resolution and soft tissue contrast, especially when using contrast agents. In the European Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, scientists have presented a new kind of nanoparticle contrast agent combining two contrast agent classes – iron oxide and rare earth metal ions – into one chemical compound. These rare earth orthoferrites were obtained in a sol-gel process followed by autocombustion.