Physics of Nanomaterials

Module V

Application of Nanomaterials
Learning objectives

Sectors influenced by nanomaterials-health, communication, energy, environment, safety,

security and defence, nanophotonic devices, nanosensors, Quantum dots, MEMS &NE MS

Module V: Application of Nanomaterials 1

Q.1 Explain how nanotechnology influenced the health sector?
Since nanomaterials possess unique chemical, physical and mechanical properties, they can be used for a
wide variety of applications, ranging from toothpaste to satellites. Nanotechnology is finding application
in virtually all fields ranging from science to engineering, influencing our lifestyle in many ways. The
consumer world is being flooded with ‘nanotechnology enhanced’ products, with many more to come.
Nanomaterials are finding application in cosmetics, textiles, healthcare, tissue engineering, catalysis,
functional coatings, medical diagnosis and therapeutics, sensors and communication engineering, water
and air pollution treatment.
Some of these applications are discussed below.
Health care and Medicine
1. In the field of medicine, nanotechnology finds application in diagnosis, therapeutics, prosthesis
materials and tissue engineering.
2. Nanomaterials have dimensions similar to those of biological molecules and hence they are useful
for biomedical applications.
3. By attaching different biomolecules to nanomaterials, they can be used in medical applications
for specific functions.
4. Nanotechnology is being developed for both therapeutic (using nano-drug delivery systems) and
diagnostic (nano-biosensors) applications.
• Gold nanoparticles attached to short segments of DNA can be used to detect the genetic
sequence of a sample.
• Bandages embedded with silver nanoparticles are gaining popularity for providing anti-
microbial protection and to aid faster wound healing.
• Nanostructured synthetic skin is being used for several skin graft applications.
• Biocapsules are increasingly being used as substitutes for diabetic insulin, targeted drug
delivery, biosensors, etc.
• Respiration monitors utilizing nanomaterials can be more sensitive than conventional
monitors.
5. Early detection of a disease always enables quicker and more effective cure and recovery.
6. Nanotechnology-based sensors and medications have come in handy for the early diagnosis of
several diseases.
7. Nanoparticles have shown potential for detecting viruses, pre-cancerous cells, etc.
8. Targeted drug delivery systems can deliver drugs effectively and conveniently with increased
patient compliance, extended product life and reduced healthcare costs.
9. Nanobots or nano-robots are becoming a reality. They are devices that can be injected into the
bloodstream to cure diseases at specific locations and their motion is controlled by an external
field. Nanotechnology is thus envisioned as being capable of changing the way we live.
10. Drug delivery systems that rely on nanomaterials are used for the targeted delivery of compounds
characterized by low oral bioavailability due to poor water solubility, permeability and provide
for longer sustained and controlled release.
11. The overall drug consumption and side effects can be lowered significantly by coating drugs on
nanoparticles. This highly selective approach reduces cost and human suffering. For example,
dendrimers and nanoporous materials can transport small molecules of drugs to the desired
location.
12. Another application is based on small electromechanical systems: nano-electromechanical
systems (NEMS) are being investigated for the active release of drugs. The use of gold-coated
shells for cancer therapy is in an advanced stage of research. used as catalysts in

Module V: Application of Nanomaterials 2

Q.2 Explain the influence of nanotechnology communication sector?

Communication
1. In the current age of communications, there is a continuous demand to enhance information
storage capacity in electronic devices.
2. Nature has perfected DNA, a nanomolecule, that not only stores but also manifests the entire
personality of a species.
3. Even more fascinating perhaps is that, nature synthesizes these nanomolecule more efficiently
and quickly under ambient conditions.
4. In contrast, all artificial nanomaterial synthesis methods adopted by us today are based on high-
energy processes, usually involving high temperature, electrical or other forms of energy, high or
very low pressures, etc.
5. Hence, there is so much more to learn from nature, even in fundamental aspects of synthesis and
functioning of nanomaterials.
6. The revolution in communications systems represented by the common sight of everyone,
including the young and old, student and professional, craftsman and scientist, holding a mobile
telephone, is perhaps the most obvious evidence of the potential of this new technological
imperative.
Novel opto-electronic devices
7. In modern communication technology, traditional analogue electrical devices are being
increasingly replaced by optical or opto-electronic devices due to their enormous bandwidth and
capacity.
8. Photonic crystals and quantum dots are good examples for this. Photonic crystals are defined as
materials in which the refractive index varies periodically, whose lattice constant is half the
wavelength of the light used. They are in one way similar to semiconductors and have selectable
band gap light or photons instead of electrons.
Photonic crystal fibre (PCF):
9. This is a new class of optical fibre based on the properties of photonic crystals. Because of its
ability to confine light in hollow cores or with confinement characteristics not possible in
conventional optical fibres, PCF is now being used in opticalcommunications, fibre lasers, non-
linear devices, high-power transmission, highly sensitive gas sensors and other areas.
10. More specific categories of PCFs include photonic-band gap fibre (PCFs that confine light by
band gap effects), holey fibre (PCFs using air holes in their cross sections), hole-assisted fibre
(PCFs guiding light by a conventional higher-index core modified by the presence of air holes),
and Bragg fibre (photonic-band gap fibre formed by concentric rings of multilayer film).
11. Smaller satellites are now becoming feasible, owing to the miniaturization enabled by
nanotechnology.
12. Besides reducing their size, weight and power consumption, the use of micromachined devices
could give better component integration in areas such as propulsion, communication, data
processing, power generation and navigation.
13. With a distributed network of small satellites instead of one big one, both functionality (multi-
aperture synthesis for better accuracy, formation flying) as well as redundancy is gained. The
ultimate goal is to develop
Q.3 Explain how nanotechnology influenced the environmental sector?

Environmental
1. Automobile catalytic converters for the removal of noxious and toxic gases such as carbon
monoxide and nitrogen oxide
2. Power generation equipment to prevent environmental pollution arising from burning gasoline
and coal

Module V: Application of Nanomaterials 3

 3. Filtration Nanochemistry also finds immense use in wastewater treatment and air purification
devices. One class of filtration techniques is based on the use of membranes with
appropriatelysized pores, through which the liquid is allowed to pass.
4. Nanoporous membranes used in nanofiltration have extremely small pores of less than 10 nm.
Nanofiltration is used mainly for the removal of ions or the separation of different fluids.
Ultrafiltration is used to remove particles with size between 10 nm and 100 nm.
5. Renal dialysis is an important application of ultrafiltration.
6. Magnetic nanoparticles offer an effective and reliable method to remove heavy metal
contaminants from wastewater by the use of magnetic separation techniques.
7. Nanoscale particles increase the efficiency to adsorb contaminants.
8. Elimination of pollutants Nanoscale materials can be used effectively in soil/sediment and water
remediation.
9. For sites where refractory organic contamination has penetrated deeply into the soil, it would be
cost effective to develop remediation technologies that do not require excavation.
10. The use of zero-valent iron particles has been shown to be effective in penetrating the required
distances, and oxidizing selected organic contaminants.
11. Research is underway to examine the fate of those iron particles to make sure they do not cause
ancillary problems.
Q.4 Explain how nanotechnology influenced the energy sector?

Renewable energy use of nanomaterials to extract hydrogen from water, to harvest energy from the sun
and biomass, to store energy as hydrogen fuel cells, batteries and capacitors. Nanomaterials are also being
used as advanced catalysts for energy conversion. Nanomaterials will also impact efficient utilization of
energy for industries such as transportation, power generation and utilization, water management and
purification and environmental cleanup. A number of studies are underway to deploy nanotechnology to
meet future energy needs.

ENERGY
Nanomaterials are bound to find a place in green energy technologies too. The most common
nanostructured energy enabling technologies that are emerging are:

1. Nanostructured photovoltaic systems

2. Nanostructured fuel cells
3. Hydrogen storage systems
4. Efficient light emitting devices

Conventional solar cells suffer from the limitations of poor efficiency and high cost compared to other
large-scale energy resources. Nanomaterials-based solar panels can have increased performance and the
technology could soon compete with conventional power plants.
The three main types of nano-solar cells being developed are:

1. Flexible polymer-based photovoltaics

2. Nanoparticle solar cells
3. Sprayable self-assembling photocells

Scientists are developing cheap and easy-to-apply plastic solar cells, composed of tiny nanorods dispersed
in a polymer that can be easily applied to any surface. These nanorods absorb a particular wavelength to
generate electrons. Their efficiency is presently only about 2%, though they are much cheaper. However,
it is expected that by tuning the dimensions of the nanotube, it is possible to absorb a wide range of
energy from light which would result in improved efficiency. It has been observed that the addition of a
small fraction of carbon nanotubes to nanocrystalline TiO2 film almost doubles the efficiency.
Module V: Application of Nanomaterials 4
Another promising area for the application of nanotechnology is the ‘hydrogen economy’. Hydrogen can
be a good alternate fuel of the future not only because it is readily available in water but also because it is
a non-polluting source of energy. Low-cost techniques of obtaining hydrogen from water may be worked
out with the help of nanocatalysts. Nano-pyramids of (5–15 nm) iridium have been found to be highly
efficient in aiding hydrogen generation from ammonia.
Nanotechnology can help in the development of the following:

1. Nano-engineered hydrocarbon carbon surface membranes

2. Spray depositing platinum on porous alumina
3. Replacement of platinum catalysts using less expensive nanomaterials

Nanotechnology has also resulted in a significant about turn in the performance of of Li ion batteries.
Application of certain nanomaterials has resulted in a decrease in organic electrolyte reduction during
recharging. Nanoparticles quickly absorb and store vast quantities of lithium ions, without causing any
deterioration in the electrode. This nano-enabled Li battery is also 60 times faster than the typical lithium
ion batteries that are widely used today. In addition, the battery has a long life cycle, losing only 1% of
capacity after 1,000 cycles of discharging and recharging, and can operate at very low temperatures. At –
40°C the battery can discharge 80% of its capacity, against 100% in an ambient temperature of 25°C. This
speedy and highly effective recharge characteristic of the battery will support CO2 reduction resulting in
eco

Q.5 Explain how nanotechnology influenced the defence and space sector?

DEFENCE AND SPACE APPLICATIONS

Nanotechnology can play a vital role in defence and space systems by minimising size, weight
and power consumption that are important for long-range coverage. Also, embedded nanosensors enabled
with wireless networks can enhance the intelligence of future warfare systems. There are several possible
applications of nanotechnology for defence and space applications, as shown below:
1. Light-weight vehicles to enhance fuel economy; longer distances can be covered for the same fuel
capacity
2. Smart components with built-in condition and load-monitoring sensors, such as fibre
3. Bragg
4. Adaptive structures, like adaptive skin, for better thermal control
5. High energetic propellants such as nano-dispersed aluminum
6. Lightweight protective clothes
7. Anti-ballistic and shatterproof armour
8. Advanced sensors, such as, high-resolution vision systems, RF, infrared, acoustic arrays, terahertz
and through-the-wall radar vision
9. Physical identification tags (RFID) for goods, digital ID tags for documents and information
10. Biometric sensing for personal identification characteristics, such as, fingerprint, face,

Q.6 Explain MEMS and NEMS? Distinguish between them?

MICRO- AND NANO-ELECTROMECHANICAL SYSTEMS (MEMS/NEMS)

Micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) are being used in a wide range of engineering applications
ranging from consumer products to defence systems, healthcare, automobile and environmental
monitoring.
1. Application of MEMS is motivated by several factors including their small size, reduced weight
and power consumption, improved speed and precision, etc.
Module V: Application of Nanomaterials 5
 2. Fabrication of MEMS necessitates the development of production technologies capable of precise
dimensional control of fine features and those that are repeatable, reliable and not cost
prohibitive.
3. The dimensional features of MEMS vary in the range of few micrometres to few hundred
micrometres. Microfabrication techniques are powerful tools for batch processing and
miniaturization of electromechanical devices and systems into a dimensional scale which is not
achievable by conventional machining techniques.
4. The electrical resistance of Si is a sensitive function of the external pressure and this effect is
called the piezoresistive effect. This makes Si a good sensor material to detect pressure variations.
Coupling silicon micromachining technology facilitates the fabrication of miniaturized micro-
sensors.
5. The magnitude of variation in resistance with change in pressure is dependent on several material
and environmental factors like orientation of the crystal, type and concentration of impurity and
temperature. MEMS-based silicon sensors can be used in the pressure range of 10–3 to 106 torr.

NEMS (nano-electromechanical systems) based force sensors, chemical sensors, biological sensors and
ultra-high frequency resonators, where structures of very small mass provide essential functionality, have
also been fabricated.
1. NEMS can be fabricated either by top-down or bottom-up processes. Presently, top-down
methods using lithographic techniques are the most common.
2. Bottom-up approaches involve the fabrication of nanoscale devices in much the same way as
nature constructs objects—by sequential assembly using atomic and molecular building blocks.
3. Fabrication of NEMS structures is not limited to Si. In fact, III–V compounds such as gallium
arsenide (GaAs) make particularly good NEMS materials from a fabrication perspective because
thin epitaxial GaAs films can be grown on lattice-matched materials that can be used as sacrificial
release layers.
4. One of the main constraints in the wide-scale application of MEMS/NEMS is expected to be in
their packaging. Since each device will have a unique requirement for interacting/ protection from
environment, it is difficult to standardize the packaging procedure. This lack of standardization
tends to drive up the costs associated with packaging, making MEMS less competitive.
5. In addition, it has to be ensured that the packaging mechanism does not interfere in the sensing
mechanism or will not result in variations in sensor sensitivity during performance with time.
Wafer-level packaging methods could hold the solution to this in the future.

Q.6 Write a short note on nanosensor?OR

What are the uses of nanosensors? OR
Explain the importance of nanosensors in different fields?

NANOSENSORS
Sensors Sensors made of nanocrystalline materials are extremely sensitive to a change in their
environment. Some of the applications for sensors made of nanocrystalline materials are smoke detectors,
ice detectors on aircraft wings and automobile engine performance sensors.
Nanosensors exhibit several distinct advantages over their micro scale and macroscale counterparts as
listed below:
1. Reduction in the overall size and weight of the associated system
2. Cost reduction
3. Mass production
4. Utilization of physical phenomena appearing on the nanoscale
5. Low power consumption
6. Certain applications require nanoscale systems for functional applications, for example,
implanted medical sensors must be in the nanoscale.
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 7. Enhanced sensitivity
8. Higher level of integration
9. Nanoscale sensors can be classified depending on the sensing application as physical, chemical or
biological nanosensors. Also, similar to the classification of sensors, nanoscale sensors can also
be classified according to the energy transduced
10. Other than these, nanosensors can also be classified according to:
11. Effect/transduction phenomena
12. Measurand
13. Material of the sensor element
14. Technological aspects

In particular, nanosensors can be classified depending on the nanostructures employed, such as,
nanotubes,
a) nanowires,
b) nanoparticles,
c) nanocomposites,
d) quantum dots,
e) embedded nanostructures, etc.

1. Though many varieties of sensors exist, no single sensor can effectively sense all interested
parameters in all possible environments. Therefore, building up of sensor arrays to consolidate
multiple properties in different environments is of current interest.
2. Sensor arrays contain different combinations of uni-and multi-functional sensors, to sense
multiple phenomenon at one time, like the human sensor system with eyes as the optical sensor,
nose as gas sensor, ear as the acoustic sensor and tongue as liquid chemical sensor.
3. This increases data acquisition and multiplication and is used in the chemical or biochemical
industries and so on.
4. Nanosensors and nano-enabled sensors have applications in many industries like transportation,
communications, building and facilities, medicine, safety and national security, including both
homeland defence and military operations.
5. There are numerous examples of nanowire sensors that are used, for example, to detect chemicals
and biologics: nanosensors are placed in blood cells to detect early radiation damage in
astronauts, and nanoshells are used to detect and destroy tumours.

1 Carbon nanotube-based sensors

1. The electronic properties of carbon nanotubes are such that they may be metallic or
semiconducting depending on their diameter and the arrangement of graphitic rings in the walls.
They also exhibit exceptional mechanical, thermal and chemical properties. Utilization of these
properties has led to the application of nanotubes as scanning probes, electron field emission
sources, actuators and nano-electronic devices.
2. Their nanometric dimensions, high aspect ratio, large surface area and unique thermal, optical and
electronic properties have promoted carbon nanotubes as one of the perfect candidates for sensing
applications. Nanotube-based physical sensors can measure pressure, flow, temperature and the
mass of an attached particle. Single-walled carbon nanotubes have been shown to exhibit
piezoresistive effect, i.e. when they are bent or stretched, their electrical resistance changes.
Based on this principle, carbon nanotube–based pressure and strain sensors have been developed.
The pressure sensor consists of an ultrathin aluminium oxide membrane to which carbon
nanotubes are attached.
3. To calibrate the device, the deformation of the membrane in response to applied pressure was
measured using white-light interferometry. They then monitored changes in nanotube resistance

Module V: Application of Nanomaterials 7

 as a function of strain. They could detect a change even for strains as small as a hundredth of a
percent, which in this case were induced by pressures of a few tens of kilopascals.
4. The sensing nanotube was in this case metallic so that the gauge factor was positive. It had a
value close to that of the best silicon devices.

2 Nanowire sensors
1. Nanowires are 1D structures a few nm in diameter and several microns in length and can be
developed from a variety or combination of materials.
2. They exhibit unique electrical and optical properties which can be exploited for sensing
applications leading to ultrasensitive nanosensors.
3. Sensors based on nanowires of various materials have been reported for biosensors, molecular
detection, nano-connectors and gas sensors.

3 Polymeric nanofibres and nanocomposites

1. Sensors based on polymer structures
have acquired great attention due to
their unique advantages. Conductive
polymer-based sensors exhibit higher
sensitivity and shorter response time at
room temperature over conventional
sensors (usually made of metal oxides).
2. Ease of synthesis (by chemical and
electrochemical techniques) and
modification of the main chain (by
copolymerization and structural
deviation) have resulted in enhanced
application of conductive polymers for
sensor applications.
3. Nanofibres and nanocomposites are the
current advanced polymer structures
used for sensor applications.

4. Nanoparticles

1. Nanoparticles are clusters of atoms with sizes similar to the de Broglie wavelength associated
with valence electron. So they can be considered as quantum dots having size-dependent discrete
energy levels.
2. Noble metal nanoparticle sensors work based on the high sensitivity of the LSPR (localised
surface plasmon resonance) spectrum towards change in the local refractive index of
nanoparticles when a foreign atom attaches to them.
3. LSPR-based sensors are gaining more attention as biosensors. Magnetic nanoparticles are also
used for biomedical applications by enriching the analytes to be detected with magnetic
nanoparticles, either as ferrites like MO.Fe2O3 (M= Ni, Zn, Mg, Mn and CO) or in the form of
superparamagnetic magnetite (Fe3O4), greigite (Fe3S4) and maghemite (ã-Fe2O3).
4. Particle size–dependent properties of noble metal nanoparticles and semiconductor quantum dots
have made them potential candidates for optical nanosensors.
5. Quantum dots (QDs) of nanocrystalline inorganic semiconductor materials are used as optical
sensors based on their fluorescence measurements. In these semiconductor nanocrystals, the band
Module V: Application of Nanomaterials 8
 gap can be tuned with the crystallite size; for instance, the smaller the size, the wider the energy
gap and the shorter the wave length of fluorescence. Therefore, all fluorescence colours in the
visible region can be obtained by optimizing the crystallite size during synthesis. QDs
functionalised with antibodies could be used for environmental purpose like detection of
pathogens (cholera toxin or ricin) in water. Intense absorption of visible/UV region observed in
smaller nanoparticles (diameters less than the de Broglie wavelength of electron) of noble metals
is unusual in bulk materials.
6. The use of chemical sensors for environment monitoring is of great importance.
7. Nanoparticles are also very well suited for chemical sensor applications because their large
surface area to volume ratio and physical properties often vary considerably in response to
changes in the chemical environment. Because nanoparticles can be made of structures just a few
atoms across, even a few molecules can trigger a response.
[Link] nanosensors
1. Fibre-optic sensors provide useful tools for remote in situ monitoring.
2. Fibre-optic sensors can be used for sensing intracellular/intercellular physiological and biological
species. Scientists have developed nanosensors for the in situ intracellular measurement of single
cells using antibody-based nanoprobes.
3. Incubation of cells with fluorescent dyes or nanoparticles and their interaction is commonly
studied using microscopy techniques. During incubation of a dye or nanoparticle into a cell, it is
generally transported to intracellular sites.
4. With optical nanosensors, excitation light can be delivered to specific locations inside cells. In
these nanosensors, the monitoring process is almost non-invasive.
5. Combined with the exquisite molecular recognition of antibody probes, nanosensors could serve
as powerful tools for exploring biomolecular processes in sub-compartments of living cells. They
have a great potential to provide the necessary tools to investigate the multi-protein molecular
machines of complex living systems and the complex network that controls the assembly and
operation of these machines in a living cell.
6. It is expected that nanosensors equipped with nanotool sets will soon be developed for tracking,
assembly and disassembly of multi-protein molecular machines. Scientists have so far been
investigating the genes and proteins by breaking the cell apart and studying their individual
components in vitro. It is expected that nanosensors would permit research on entire networks of
genes and proteins in the living cell in vivo.

[Link]-based magnetic nanosensors

Semiconductor quantum interference devices (SQUID) were first invented in 1964 which involves
obtaining small changes in current and magnetic fields as voltage at room temperature

[Link] Nanosensors are used in medicine in diagnosis and in aiding controlled drug delivery to
infected cells. Several biological nanosensors for cancer detection, blood glucose detection, biotoxin
detection, detection of specific DNA and identification of chromosomal defects have been realised
already.

[Link]
Chemical reactions are significantly enhanced by catalysts. Due to the large surface area-tovolume ratio,
nanomaterials can be more efficient catalysts. Nanocatalysts can lead to cost savings and can also have
higher selectivity than conventional catalysts; this can reduce waste and hence the environmental impact.

Q.7 Explain the importance of quantum dots?

QUANTUM DOTS

Module V: Application of Nanomaterials 9

If the electrons are confined by a potential barrier in all three directions, the nanocrystals are called
quantum dots (QDs).
QDs have unique properties that fall betweenbulk semiconductors and individual molecules. QDs in
transistors, solar cells, LEDs, diode lasers, etc., have been studied. They have also been used for medical
imaging. Some QDs are commercially available.
Fabrication
There are several ways to confine excitons in semiconductors, resulting in different methods of producing
QDs. In the following section, the discussion is limited to selected promising QD technologies including
1. semiconductor nanocrystal QDs (NCQD),
2. lithographically made QDs (LGQD),
3. field effect QDs (FEQD) and
4. self-assembled QDs (SAQD).

Semiconductor nanocrystal QDs (NCQD)

1. A nanocrystal (NC) is a single crystal with a diameter of a few nanometres. An NCQD is a
nanocrystal which has a smaller band gap than the surrounding material. Grinding of a
macroscopic crystal can produce NCQDs. NCQDs are attractive for optical applications because
their colour is directly determined by their dimensions. The size of the NCQD can be selected by
filtering a larger collection NCQD or by tuning the parameters of a chemical fabrication process.
2. CdSe nanocrystals Cadmium selenide (CdSe) NCQDs are approximately spherical crystallites
with either wurtzite or a zinc-blend structure. Their diameter usually ranges between 1 and 10
nm.
3. The room temperature quantum yield and photo stability can be improved further by covering the
CdSe NCQDs with, for example, cadmium sulphide (CdS).
4. Silicon nanocrystals Silicon/silicon dioxide (Si/SiO2) NCQDs are Si clusters completely
embedded in insulating SiO2. They are fabricated by ion-implanting Si atoms into either ultrapure
quartz or thermally grown SiO2. The NCQDs are then formed from the implanted atoms under
thermal annealing. The exact structure of the resulting NCQDs is not known.
Lithographically made QDs (LGQD)
1. A vertical QD (VQD) is formed by etching out a pillar from a quantum wall (QW) or a double
barrier heterostructure (DBH). The Al-GaAs/InGaAs/AlGaAs DBH was grown epitaxially, after
which a cylindrical pillar was etched through the DBH. Finally, metallic contacts were made for
electrical control of the QD.
2. Typical QD dimensions comprise a diameter of about 500 nm and thickness of about 50 nm. The
confinement potential due to the Al-GaAs barriers is about 200 meV. The optical quality of
VQDs is usually fairly poor due to the etched boundaries.
3. However, VQDs are attractive for electrical devices because of the well-controlled geometry and
the well-defined electrical contacts.
Field effect quantum dots (FEQD)
In a field effect QD (FEQD), the charge carriers are confined into a 2D electron gas (2DEG) by a
modulation-doped heterojunction. Within the 2DEG plane, the charges are electrostatically confined by
external gates. Figure 6.4 shows the schematic of typical device geometry. The
Self-assembled quantum dots (SAQD)
In self-assembly of QDs, one makes use of an island formation in epitaxial growth. This is similar
to forming water droplets on a polished surface. These islands are either QDs themselves or QDs formed
on a QW. The major self-assembly growth techniques are vapour phase epitaxy (VPE) and molecular
beam epitaxy (MBE).

Applications of Quantum Dots

1. Quantum dots can be used in optical applications due to their large possible quantum yield.

Module V: Application of Nanomaterials 10

 2. In electronic applications, QDs have been
proven to operate like a single electron
transistor and show the Coulomb blockade
effect.
3. QDs are also being suggested as qubits for
quantum information processing. The main
advantage of QDs is the ability to tune their
size.
4. Larger QDs show red shift in their spectra in comparison to smaller QDs.
5. The smaller QDs show significant quantum properties.
6. As QDs are zero-dimensional structures, they have sharper density of states in comparison to
higher-dimensional structures.
7. QDs have excellent transport and optical properties, and are hence used in diode lasers, amplifiers
and biological sensors.
8. Computing QD technology is one of the most promising candidates for use in solid-state quantum
computation. The application of a small voltage can control the flow of electrons through the
9. QD and thereby make precise measurements of the spin and other properties therein. With the
help of several entangled QDs, quantum calculations might be possible.
10. Photovoltaic devices Quantum dots may have the potential to increase the efficiency and reduce
the cost of today’s typical silicon photovoltaic cells.
11. QD photovoltaics would theoretically be cheaper to manufacture, as they can be made using
simple chemical reactions.
12. Light emitting devices There are several inquiries into using QDs as light-emitting diodes to
make displays and other light sources: QD–LED displays and QD–WLED (White LED).

Q.8 Write a short note on nanophotonic devices?

Nanophotonic devices
1. Nanophotonics or Nano-optics is the study of the behavior of light on the nanometer scale, and
of the interaction of nanometer-scale objects with light.
2. It is a branch of optics, optical engineering, electrical engineering, and nanotechnology. It often
involves metallic components, which can transport and focus light via surface plasmon polaritons.
3. Normal optical components, like lenses and microscopes, generally cannot normally focus light to
nanometer (deep subwavelength) scales, because of the diffraction limit (Rayleigh criterion).
4. Nevertheless, it is possible to squeeze light into a nanometer scale using other techniques like, for
example, surface plasmons, localized surface plasmons around nanoscale metal objects, and the
nanoscale apertures and nanoscale sharp tips used in near-field scanning optical
microscopy (NSOM) and photoassisted scanning tunnelling microscopy
Optoelectronics and microelectronics
1. If light can be squeezed into a small volume, it can be absorbed and detected by a small detector.
Small photodetectors tend to have a variety of desirable properties including low noise, high
speed, and low voltage and power.
2. Small lasers have various desirable properties for optical communication including low threshold
current (which helps power efficiency) and fast modulation. Very small lasers
require subwavelength optical cavities. An example is spasers, the surface plasmon version of
lasers.

Module V: Application of Nanomaterials 11

 3. Integrated circuits are made using photolithography, i.e. exposure to light. In order to make very
small transistors, the light needs to be focused into extremely sharp images. Using various
techniques such as immersion lithography and phase-shifting photomasks, it has indeed been
possible to make images much finer than the wavelength—for example, drawing 30 nm lines
using 193 nm light. Plasmonic techniques have also been proposed for this application.
4. Heat-assisted magnetic recording is a nanophotonic approach to increasing the amount of data
that a magnetic disk drive can store. It requires a laser to heat a tiny, subwavelength area of the
magnetic material before writing data. The magnetic write-head would have metal optical
components to concentrate light at the right location.
5. Miniaturization in optoelectronics, for example the miniaturization of transistors in integrated
circuits, has improved their speed and cost. However, optoelectronic circuits can only be
miniaturized if the optical components are shrunk along with the electronic components. This is
relevant for on-chip optical communication.
Solar cells
Solar cells often work best when the light is absorbed very close to the surface, both because electrons
near the surface have a better chance of being collected, and because the device can be made thinner,
which reduces cost. Researchers have investigated a variety of nanophotonic techniques to intensify light
in the optimal locations within a solar cell.
Spectroscopy
1. Using nanophotonics to create high peak intensities: If a given amount of light energy is squeezed
into a smaller and smaller volume ("hot-spot"), the intensity in the hot-spot gets larger and larger.
This is especially helpful in nonlinear optics; an example is surface enhanced Raman scattering. It
also allows sensitivespectroscopy measurements of even single molecules located in the hot-spot,
unlike traditional spectroscopy methods which take an average over millions or billions of
molecules.
Microscopy
2. One goal of nanophotonics is to construct a so-called "superlens", which would
use metamaterials (see below) or other techniques to create images that are more accurate than
the diffraction limit (deep subwavelength).
3. Near-field scanning optical microscope (NSOM or SNOM) is a quite different nanophotonic
technique that accomplishes the same goal of taking images with resolution far smaller than the
wavelength. It involves raster-scanning a very sharp tip or very small aperture over the surface to
be imaged.
4. Near-field microscopy refers more generally to any technique using the near-field (see below) to
achieve nanoscale, subwavelength resolution. For example,dual polarization interferometry has
picometer resolution in the vertical plane above the waveguide surface.
Principles

Module V: Application of Nanomaterials 12

Plasmons and metal optics
Plasmon and Surface plasmon
1. Metals are an effective way to confine light to far below the wavelength. This was originally used
in radio and microwave engineering, where metal antennasand waveguides may be hundreds of
times smaller than the free-space wavelength. For a similar reason, visible light can be confined
to the nano-scale via nano-sized metal structures, such as nano-sized structures, tips, gaps, etc.
This effect is somewhat analogous to a lightning rod, where the field concentrates at the tip.
2. This effect is fundamentally based on the fact that the permittivity of the metal is very large and
negative. At very high frequencies (near and above the plasma frequency, usually ultraviolet), the
permittivity of a metal is not so large, and the metal stops being useful for concentrating fields.
3. Many nano-optics designs look like common microwave or radiowave circuits, but shrunk down
by a factor of 100,000 or more. After all, radiowaves, microwaves, and visible light are all
electromagnetic radiation; they differ only in frequency. So other things equal, a microwave
circuit shrunk down by a factor of 100,000 will behave the same way but at 100,000 times higher
frequency. there are a number of very important differences between nano-optics and scaled-
down microwave circuits. For example, at optical frequency, metals behave much less like ideal
conductors, and also exhibit interesting plasmon-related effects like kinetic
inductance and surface plasmon resonance. Likewise, optical fields interact
with semiconductors in a fundamentally different way than microwaves do.
4. Near-field optics
5. If you take the Fourier transform of an object, it consists of different spatial frequencies. The
higher frequencies correspond to the very fine features and sharp edges.
6. When light is emitted by such an object, the light with very high spatial frequency forms
an evanescent wave, which only exists in the near field (very close to the object, within a
wavelength or two) and disappears in the far field. This is the origin of the diffraction limit,
which says that when a lens images an object, the subwavelength information is blurred out.
7. Nano-photonics is primarily concerned with the near-field evanescent waves. For example,
a superlens (mentioned above) would prevent the decay of the evanescent wave, allowing higher-
resolution imaging.

Module V: Application of Nanomaterials 13