Role of Semiconductor Oxides in Forensic Sciences: A Review

Semiconductor oxides are playing an important role in the advancing modern forensic science, offering sensitive, selective, and rapid analyses. At nanoscale, they have a high surface area, unique chemical and physical properties, versatility, tunable optical, electrical, and magnetic characteristics. Applying different characterization techniques with semiconductor oxides on the nano-forensic evidences can provide the accurate and efficient results. Key semiconductor oxides such as ZnO, TiO2, CuO, or Iron oxides can be used in drugs/toxic powder detection, gun powder/explosive residue analyses, fingerprint detection, and other forensic applications as photocatalysis, artificial olfactory system, powder suspension, auxiliary agent, colorimetric, gas, and electrochemical sensing.