Photothermal-based nanomaterials and photothermal-sensing: An overview

Based on the excellent properties, photothermal nanomaterials have been widely used in many fields, such as trace substance detection, optical imaging, medical diagnosis and treatment. Different from colorimetric, fluorescent and electrochemical methods which often suffer from the problems of high background interference, operation procedure dependence and high cost, photothermal sensing can effectively break the limitations of the above methods and become an alternative strategy due to its high resolution and spatial controllability. Especially in recent years, the continuous development of new materials and the introduction of portable, low-cost and precision photothermal measuring equipment can significantly improve the application potential of photothermal detection. Here, we conducted comprehensive analyses on those studies. This review summarized the progress of photothermal detection over recent years, including the main types of photothermal nanomaterials and the generation principle of the photothermal effect, the relevant matching thermometry tools, and the applications in the designing of sensing strategies. It aims to provide a reference for researchers to synthesize nanomaterials with stable and high photothermal conversion efficiency and develop more effective and sensitive detection methods.