History Of Nanotechnology

Nanotechnology has its origin from various fields of science from physical, biological, engineering and chemical engineering where interestingly, new ideas have been produced to alter molecules and single atoms (Mubarakali et al., 2011). In the rapidly improving field of nanotechnology, nanomaterials are on the leading front. According to Shubba Rao et al. (2013), their special property is dependent on their size, giving them an edge over other materials and improves their applicability in various human activities.

A Nanoparticle (10-9m) has been defined as a little particle that has the behavior characteristics of a whole unit in terms of transportation and properties (Prathna et al., 2011). According to Poole and Owens (2003); “Nanoscience is the science based on the diverse structures of materials which have dimensions of a billionth part of the meter”. Therefore it can be said according to Yuvakkumar et al., (2011); that Nanotechnology involves the art of altering matter with an astounding precision at a scale ranging less than 1-100nm. Nanotechnology is emerging as a rapidly growing field with its application in Science and Technology for the purpose of manufacturing new materials at the nanoscale level (Albrecht et al., 2006). 

According to Mahendra et al., (2008); “Silver has been in use since time immemorial in the form of metallic silver, silver nitrate, silver sulfadiazine for the treatment of burns, wounds and several bacterial infections. But due to the emergence of several antibiotics the use of these silver compounds has declined remarkably. Nanotechnology is gaining tremendous impetus in the present century due to its capability of modulating metals into their nanosize, which drastically changes the chemical, physical and optical properties of metals. Metallic silver in the form of silver nanoparticles has made a remarkable progress in medicine and health as a potential antimicrobial agent. The use of silver nanoparticles is also important, as several pathogenic bacteria have developed resistance against various antibiotics. Hence, silver nanoparticles have emerged up with diverse medical applications ranging from silver based dressings, silver coated medicinal devices, such as nanogels, nanolotions, etc". Silver nanoparticles among various metal nanoparticles have received significant consideration because they are effective antimicrobial agents that exhibit low toxicity; and have diverse in vitro and in vivo applications (Abou et al., 2010). Hence, Logeswari