A fine yellow-brown powder composed of spherical particles of silicon, the optic and electric properties of silicon nanoparticles have made them a favorite 

among nanoparticle researchers in recent years, revealing a multitude of new applications and improvements on existing ones. Silicon nanoparticles come

in a variety of sizes, mostly falling into smaller 5-25nm configurations or larger 80-100 nm configurations. 

Silicon(Si) Nanopowder Applications

•      •  Optical properties. As with many nanoparticles, silicon produces unexpected optical properties as a nanostructure, due to the confinement of
           electrons and quantum effects. This makes them of particular interest in fields ranging from simple aesthetic design work to solar energy research.
           As with many other nanopowders, silicon nanopowders have also been thoroughly researched for applications in biomedicine and biosensing.
  
  
•      •  Semiconductors. Due to additional quantum effects such as quantum confinement seen at the nanostructure size, silicon nanoparticles have seen
           intense research as a semiconductive material. Precision electronics manufacturing and production of unique alloys and slurries have made thorough
          use of silicon nanopowders already.
  
  
•      •  Solar Energy Cell. Due to its unique optical and conductive properties, silicon nanopowder serves as a key material in the production of various
          solar energy cells, including thin film solar cells and amorphous silicon solar cells. Continued research shows multiple avenues to improve the efficiency,
          efficacy, and cost of producing solar cells with these materials and other nanomaterials exhibiting similar optical properties.
  
  
•      •  Lithium-ion Battery. One of the most exciting applications of silicon nanoparticles, revealed by research a few years ago. Scientists utilizing silicon
         nanoparticles have produced lithium-ion batteries with extreme performance, as high as triple the energy storage potential of regular lithium-ion batteries.
         Research continues to seek ways to make the most of silicon nanostructures in energy storage.
  
  
•      •  Drug delivery. As drug delivery technology grows increasingly important to medicine, silver nanoparticles have seen heavy research as a potential tool for
          controlled drug delivery. The biocompatibility, biogradability, high surface area, controllable pore sizes, and optical properties of silicon nanoparticles
          combine to make them an excellent candidate for research.