The applications of carbon nanostructures and semiconductor materials in the development of biosensors

In recent years, nanomaterials and nanostructures with unique chemical, physical, and mechanical properties have been developed and applied as both sensing matrices and transducers, offering new opportunities for the development of highly sensitive bio-chemical sensors. The chemical and physical characteristics of the electrochemically active carbon nanotubes, nanofibers and fullerenes, as well as their potential applications in biosensors will be first analyzed. In addition, the advances that have been made in the area of biosensors based on semiconductor materials and quantum dots will be presented. The advantages of the use of these two families of nanomaterials in the design of new devices are thus very promising towards future envisioned biosensor applications.