Emerging Trends in Nanotechnology for Forensic Science

Nanotechnology applied for forensic purposes is a field of Materials Science that is rapidly growing due to its numerous possibilities of application, such as latent fingerprint developers and sensors for illicit drugs, metabolites, and explosives. The structural, optical, and electronic properties of nanomaterials may be controlled by modification of their surface or functionality and preparation of nanocomposites and polymer nanofibers aiming at improvement of the current methodologies employed by forensic laboratories for analyses and interpretation of crime scene evidence. We here describe recent progress in nanotechnology research for the design of materials that present useful characteristics as fluorescence, ability to interact with certain analyte or specific compound of interest, fast response, and low cost. We focus on the importance of validating and applying innovative methodologies as tools for the development of latent fingerprints and detection of analytes of forensic interest aiming at circumventing the limitations eventually found for conventional approaches. The first section is devoted to a brief introduction to forensic sciences, in addition to an overview about the structure and properties of nanoparticles and its nanocomposites. Next, we focus on recent advances concerning the preparation of polymer nanofibers and nanocomposites by electrospinning technique. Last, we underline the possibilities of innovative applications of these advanced materials in Forensic Science.