The possibility of manufacturing silicon nanoparticles by picosecond laser fragmentation of silicon microparticles in water is analysed. It is shown that for fragmentation duration of 40 min, the dependence of the average sizes of particles on the initial mass concentration of the micropowder varied in the range of 0.5–12 mg mL-1 is nonmonotonic, with the maximum average size of 165 nm being achieved at a concentration of 5 mg mL-1. To explain the obtained result, the simulation of propagation of a focused laser beam in a scattering suspension of silicon microparticles is performed for their different mass concentrations. It is demonstrated that at concentrations not exceeding 5 mg mL-1, fragmentation occurs in the paraxial region of the beam when it propagates deep into the cuvette with a suspension, while at higher concentrations it occurs primarily in the superficial layer owing to strong extinction. Calculations results allow the experimental features of the formation of silicon nanoparticles to be explained. Spectrophotometry measurements on suspensions of nanoparticles obtained at the initial concentration of microparticles of 12 mg mL-1 are compared with the theoretical estimates of the absorption and scattering coefficients obtained in the framework of the Mie theory. Measured optical properties indicate the potential of using fragmented nanoparticles as scattering and/or absorbing contrast agents in optical imaging of biological objects.

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