Bismuth-Based Nanomaterials and Platforms for Sensing and Biosensing Applications

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. All rights reserved. Bismuth (Bi) has a high electrical resistance and the thermal conductivity is lower than any other metal except mercury; considering that, Bi is sometimes called a semimetal. These semi metallic properties are particularly interesting for its use as a thermoelectric material because of its low effective mass, highly anisotropic Fermi surface, and its potential to induce a semimetal/semiconductor transition with decreasing crystallite size that is typical for soft metals. This chapter discusses some examples of Bi-based systems for both sensing and biosensing. It shows the most advanced methodologies for synthesis of Bi nanostructures of different shapes and sizes based on the use of different reducing and stabilizing agents. The biocompatibility of Bi makes possible the conjugation of Bi nanostructures with enzymes and antibodies. The analysis of organic compounds, pharmaceutical substances, and pesticides as well as other compounds of biological relevance is also achieved by using Bi-based biosensors.