Identifying Emerging Nanoparticle Roles in Biosensors

This paper profiles R&D on the application of nanoparticles in biosensors and explores potential application development pathways. The analysis uses a dataset of nanotechnology publication records for the time period 2001 through 2008(part year) extracted from the Science Citation Index. It focuses on emergent research activities prominent in the most recent 3 years. Bibliometric analyses are employed to ascertain R&D trends and research networks for key biosensors, and extrapolating models are used to forecast the technological trend for nanoparticle-based biosensors. In addition, a combination of quantity (publication) and quality (citation) analysis for nanoparticle-based biosensors helps position the leading countries in this research field. Science overlay mapping helps us see the different emphases of nanoparticle-based biosensors research between the US and China. Most recent studies present that nanoparticles relating to biosensors show significant maturation. Biosensors, enabled by nanoparticles, show promise for improvement in stability, sensitivity, selectivity and indirect detection. This paper demonstrates how bibliometric analyses can help anticipate emerging technology development and application potential.