Thin is safer than thick when it comes to the safety of silver nanowires — highly conductive nanomaterials a thousand times thinner than a human hair that are being used in next-generation touchscreens, report a transnational team of scientists that includes University of Florida researchers. In a new study, the team assessed the relative toxicity of different lengths and thicknesses of the material. They concluded that not only are thinner nanowires safer, they also perform as well or better than the thicker nanowires. Dr. Christopher Vulpe, a professor and ecotoxicologist with UF’s Center for Environmental and Human Toxicology, and Dr. Devrah Arndt, a postdoctoral associate in Vulpe’s lab, discuss the team’s work in this video.
