Silica Nanoparticles

Silica consists of one silicon atom and two oxygen atoms (SiO2) and is commonly used in various aspects of daily life. For example, it has been used as glass, insulator, and so on. Nowadays, silica is used as core reagents for fabricating and encapsulating nanoparticles (NPs). In this chapter, the usage of silica in nanotechnology is described. Synthesis and surface modification of silica nanoparticles (SiNPs), including via the Stober method, reverse microemulsion method, and modified sol-gel method, are illustrated. Then, various NPs with silica encapsulation are explained. At last, the biological applications of those mentioned NPs are described.