1 - Physics and chemistry of colloidal metal oxide nanocrystals and their applications to nanotechnologies and microsystems: An introduction

Abstract

The chapter will offer a brief introduction to the basic concepts related to colloidal systems in order to make the reader familiar with the respective topics described in the following chapters in the proposed book. This chapter will start by defining colloidal systems as well as nano colloidal systems, followed by a brief depiction on the stability and classification of different colloidal systems. This will be followed by the peculiar properties of colloidal systems, including aggregation, transport, and interaction of colloidal systems in/with different environments. Because the book is about colloidal metal oxides, in the latter part of the chapter we would like to focus more on colloidal metal oxide particles, especially on their specific interactions (both intramolecular and intermolecular) and the applicability of these in research and industry. We will end with a short conclusion and reference section.