CLASSIFICATION OF NANOMATERIALS

 On the basis of dimensions, nanomaterials are classified into: zero-dimensional (OD), one-dimensional (1D), two-
dimension- al (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) nanomaterials. In zero-di- mensional nanomaterials, all
dimensions (along X, Y and Z directions) are confined within the nanoscale.
 Zero-dimensional (0D) nanomaterials confine all dimensions within the nanoscale, commonly represented by
nanoparticles and quantum dots.
 One-dimensional (1D) nanomaterials have one dimension outside the nanoscale while the other two are within it,
including nanotubes, nanorods, and nanowires like carbon nanotubes and silicon nanowires.
 Two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials have one dimension within the nanoscale and the other two outside it,
exhibiting plate-like shapes such as nanofilms, nanolayers, and nanosheets, with graphene being a notable
example.
 Three-dimensional (3D) nanomaterials are bulk materials not confined to the nanoscale in any dimension, with
three arbitrarily sized dimensions above 100 nm.
 Bulk nanomaterials can have a nanocrystalline structure composed of a multiple arrangement of nanosize crystals,
often in different orientations.
 3D nanomaterials may contain dispersal of nanoparticles, bundles of nanowires, nanotubes, and multinanolayers
as features at the nanoscale.
NANOPARTICLES
 Nanoparticles range between 1 and 100 nanometers in size, exhibiting behaviors different from bulk materials due
to their small size.
 They can be made of metal, dielectric, or semiconductor materials and may form hybrid structures like core-shell
nanoparticles.
 Semiconducting nanoparticles, particularly below 10 nm, may be referred to as quantum dots due to quantization
of electronic energy levels.
 Nanoparticles serve as a bridge between bulk materials and atomic or molecular structures, exhibiting size-
dependent properties not seen in larger materials.
 At the nanoscale, properties change significantly, influenced by the percentage of surface area compared to
volume, leading to unexpected optical properties and quantum effects.
 Examples of property changes include quantum confinement in semiconductors, surface plasmon resonance in
metals, and superparamagnetism in magnetic materials.
 Gold nanoparticles, for instance, exhibit a deep-red to black color in solution, demonstrating their unique optical
properties.
NANOWIRES
 Nanowires are nanostructures with diameters on the order of a nanometre (10^-9 meters) or a length-to-width ratio
greater than 1000.
 Various types of nanowires exist, including superconducting, metallic, semiconducting (e.g., silicon nanowires),
and insulating (e.g., SiO2, TiO2) variants.
 Molecular nanowires consist of repeating molecular units, either organic (e.g., DNA) or inorganic (e.g., Mo6S9-
xIx).
 Nanowires exhibit unique properties due to quantum confinement, with electrons occupying different energy
levels compared to bulk materials.
 They possess peculiar electrical properties, sometimes demonstrating ballistic transport, unlike single-wall carbon
nanotubes.
 Nanowires find applications in creating transistors and can be used for sensing proteins and chemicals, with
silicon nanowires being preferred for nanowire FET-based chemo/biosensors.
 Silicon nanowire sensors show high sensitivity in real-time detection of biomarker proteins for cancer, single virus
particles, and nitro-aromatic explosive materials like TNT, often surpassing canine detection abilities.
ULTRATHIN FILMS
 Ultra-thin films, also known as nanosheets or nanofilms, possess unique interfacial and mechanical properties
controlled by thickness, including non-covalent adhesiveness and tunable flexibility.
 Two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials, exemplified by graphene, have attracted significant interest for their
unprecedented properties like high carrier mobility, quantum hall effect, and excellent thermal conductivity.
 Thin films are defined as homogeneous solid material between two parallel planes, extending infinitely in two
directions (x, y) but restricted along the third direction (z), known as film thickness.
 Thin films are classified based on thickness as ultrathin (few Å to 100 Å), thin (100-1000 Å), and comparatively
thicker (greater than 1000 Å).
 Ultra Thin Films (UTF) find applications in magnetic sensors, recording materials, electro-optic devices, and
novel devices like transistors and solar cells.
 Thin film deposition techniques include Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD) methods such as sputtering, thermal
evaporation, and pulsed laser ablation, along with Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD).
 Nanostructured metal-oxide thin films are used for gas sensors with enhanced sensitivity and selectivity, while
MnO2 is applied in rechargeable batteries.
 Nanocrystalline silicon films serve as highly transparent contacts in thin film solar cells, and nanostructured
titanium oxide porous films enhance absorption in dye-sensitized solar cells.
MULTI LAYERED MATERIALS
 Natural multilayers, like mollusc shells made of nacre, combine materials such as aragonite and protein to achieve
both hardness and toughness.
 High-temperature copper oxide superconductors naturally form multilayers with superconducting CuO2 layers
interleaved with insulating oxide sheets.
 Multilayered materials are used in electronic, magnetic, optical, and structural components.
 Advanced thin-film processing methods enable the precise production of artificially multilayered materials with
controlled composition and thickness.
 Early artificial multilayered thin films, such as copper and gold on a glass substrate, resulted in unstable x-ray
mirrors due to interdiffusion.
 Stable metallic multilayered thin films were achieved by alternating shuttering of evaporation sources, like Ag-Au
and Cu-Pd metals.
 Layer-By-Layer (LBL) deposition is a method for fabricating multilayered ultrathin films on solid surfaces using
polyelectrolytes of opposite charges.
 LBL deposition allows for the assembly of tunable layer systems with nanometer range thickness, surface charge,
permeability, and elasticity.
 Polyelectrolytes like poly(ethyleneimine) and poly(allylamine) are commonly used in LBL deposition, offering
versatility with various materials and bonding interactions.
QUANTUM DOTS
 Quantum dots are colloidal nanocrystalline semiconductors with diameters typically ranging from 2 to 10
nanometers.
 They exhibit unique properties due to quantum confinement effects, thus the name "zero-dimensional"
nanoparticles.
 Electrons within quantum dots are confined in a small space known as a quantum box, resulting in quantization of
energy levels when the radii of the nanocrystals are smaller than the exciton Bohr radius.
 Quantum dots are often compared to atoms due to their discrete, quantized energy levels, leading to the term
"artificial atoms."
 They are often composed of elements from groups II-VI or III-V in the periodic table, such as cadmium selenide
(CdSe), cadmium sulfide (CdS), indium arsenide (InAs), or lead sulfide (PbS).
 Quantum dots have unique electronic and optical properties, making them valuable for a wide range of
applications in fields such as electronics, photonics, biotechnology, and medicine.
 As the size of the crystal decreases, the energy difference between the highest valence band and lowest conduction
band increases, causing a shift in emitted light colour from red to blue.
 Quantum dots can emit any color of light simply by changing the size of the nanocrystal, allowing for precise
tuning of emitted light during manufacturing.
 Their high level of control over size makes quantum dots versatile for various applications requiring specific light
emission properties.
TYPES OF QUANTUM DOTS
 Quantum dots can be classified into different types based on their composition and structure.
1. Core-type Quantum Dots:

 These are single-component quantum dots with uniform internal compositions, such as cadmium chalcogenides
(CdTe, CdS) or zinc chalcogenides (ZnS).
 Properties can be fine-tuned by changing the particle size, allowing for control over photo and
electroluminescence characteristics.
2. Core-shell Quantum Dots:
 Core-shell quantum dots (CSQDs) have a core of one material surrounded by a shell of another material with a
higher band gap.
 For example, quantum dots with a core of CdSe and a shell of ZnS exhibit enhanced quantum yield (>50%) due to
improved passivation of non-radiative recombination sites and increased robustness to processing conditions.
3. Alloyed Quantum Dots:
 Multicomponent quantum dots with homogeneous or gradient internal structures allow tuning of optical and
electronic properties by changing the composition.
 Alloyed quantum dots combine two or more semiconductors with different band gap energies, resulting in unique
properties distinct from their parent materials or bulk counterparts.
 For instance, alloyed quantum dots like CdSxSe1-x/ZnS emit light of different wavelengths by varying the
composition, enabling precise control over emitted light color without changing crystallite size.