Gold nanoparticles coated polystyrene/reduced graphite oxide microspheres with improved dispersibility and electrical conductivity for dopamine detection

Gold nanoparticles coated polystyrene/reduced graphite oxide (AuNPs@PS/RGO) microspheres have been successfully prepared via a facile process, and the decorative gold nanoparticles could prevent the aggregation of RGO by electrostatic repulsive interaction, and lead to high dispersibility of the composite. The prepared composite has a highly increased conductivity of 129 S m−1 due to the unique electrical properties of citrate reduced gold nanoparticles. Being employed as an electrochemical sensor for detection of dopamine, the modified electrode exhibits remarkable sensitivity (3.44 μA/μM) and lower detection limit (5 nM), with linear response in a range of 0.05–20 μM. Moreover, valid response to dopamine obtained in present work also indicates the prospective performances of AuNPs@PS/RGO microspheres to other biological molecules, such as nucleic acids, proteins and enzymes.