Electronic Nanomaterials for Plants: A Review on Current Advances and Future Prospects

Global food security faces increasing challenges due to population growth, climate change, and the loss of arable land. To meet the growing demand for food, innovative solutions are essential. Enhancing plant photosynthesis and stress tolerance represents a promising strategy to boost crop yields and reduce vulnerability to environmental stressors. Electronic nanomaterials have emerged as a transformative technology to address these issues. Their ability to encapsulate bioactive substances, green fertilizers, and nutrients, while controlling their release, offers significant advantages over traditional methods such as chemical fertilizers and conventional plant breeding. Electronic nanomaterials can enhance nutrient uptake, biomass production, photosynthetic efficiency, and resilience to biotic and abiotic stresses in a sustainable manner. This review explores the role of metals, metal oxides, metal-organic frameworks, and carbon-based nanomaterials in improving agricultural productivity. It also highlights microfluidics as a complementary technology for testing nanomaterials and optimizing key plant processes. Microfluidics can develop transport models, improve understanding of plant compartments, and minimize side effects. By integrating nanotechnology with advanced tools like microfluidics, agriculture can adopt sustainable practices to address food security challenges. This synergy fosters crop resilience and productivity, paving the way for innovative agricultural solutions.