Nanowires, Nanotubes, and Nanoparticles

Research efforts on metal and metal semiconductor nanoparticles have flourished in recent years [2, 3], Metal nanoparticles are generally defined as isolable particles between 1 and 50 nm in size that are prevented from agglomerating by proteetive shells. Owing to their small size, such nanoparticles have physical, electronic, and chemical properties that are different from those of bulk materials. Such properties strongly depend on the number and 

Edited by Alberto Escarpa, Marfa Cristina Gonzalez and Miguel Angel Ldpez. 2015 John Wiley Sons, Ltd. Published 2015 by John Wiley Sons, Ltd. 

In the following sections, I will discuss how the unique properties of nanomaterials can lead to the creation of a new generation of high-performance electrochemical biosensors for diverse applications in food, environmental, and clinical analyses. 

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The melting point decreases considerably when the particle size of materials attains the nanoscale range. Increasing the surface-to-volume ratio affects their thermodynamic and thermal properties. The melting point depression is much lower in the case of nanowires, nanotubes, and nanoparticles than the bulk form of the same materials (Lubick and Betts 2008). 

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