3. Applications

3.1 Individual magnetic NPs

The first industrial applications for magnetic NPs date back to the 1970s. Ferrofluids were used to make loudspeakers and seals for turbo-molecular pumps. Numerous other applications were developed, notably in electronics for data storage, or for extracting pollutants from water. At present, magnetic nanoparticles are mainly exploited for their potential applications in the medical field, more commonly referred to as "nanomedicine":

• thanks to the possibility of collecting particles with a magnet, after trapping – using specific ligands – on their surface molecules of biological interest;

• as a biosensor for in vitro diagnostics;

• to develop contrast...