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Wednesday, 1st October 2008 (1893 views)

The use of gold nanoparticles in developing artificial skin with sensitivity that rivals that of a human finger has been highlighted in a new review.

This type of nanotechnology could potentially be used for burns victims as well as in surgery or robotics, according to Nanowerk.

Of the five senses, touch remains one of the most difficult for scientists to emulate, it explains, citing a report written by Vivek Maheshwari and Ravi Saraf for Wiley InterScience.

In this report, a method of reproducing human touch using gold nanoparticles to create a highly pressure-sensitive material is outlined.

Recent developments in nanotechnology, along with chemistry, have the potential to improve the expertise within this field.

Electronic skin requires highly tactile sensors as well as flexibility to successfully mimic the human epidermis, Nanowerk notes - therefore, gold nanoparticles are suitable for the process.

Tiny particles of gold were also used in a recent study into mismatched DNA by researchers in Seoul, South Korea.

 

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