ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a review of the recent research achievements in synthesis and device fabrications based on the colloidal SiNCs in water. The most commonly used methods for fabrication of the SiNCs including pulsed laser ablation, electrical discharge, and plasma-assisted synthesis approaches result in production of the Nano crystals with oxide and hydroxyl surface modifications. The chapter focuses on the optical, thermal, and electronic properties of SiNCs considering size and oxide-related surface effects which are important for the Nano crystal device applications. It hopes that the presented material stimulate a general interest in developing silicon materials-based nanotechnology. The chapter studies the optical absorption and emissions, thermo-optical response, and photovoltaic properties of the SiNCs and focuses on the size and oxide-related surface effects. It presents the SiNC device applications some of the recent achievements in fabrication of LEDs, fluorescent sensors, luminescent biological labels, radio sensitizers for cancer treatment, high-capacity lithium storage materials for lithium-ion batteries, and silicon solar cells using SiNCs.
