The Sonic Screwdriver first made an appearance in the second-Doctor story "Fury From The Deep." The screwdriver was used for nothing more complex than opening a box, although its use and creation caused controversy. Victor Pemberton, the writer of "Fury From The Deep" felt that it wasn't fair that the BBC retained ownership of a device he created, while others argued that the device was a prop that had been used countless times before, but had only been named during that story.
When Jon Pertwee took over in the role, the production decision was made to downplay the abilities of the Sonic Screwdriver. This resulted in the device being used in a loosely plausible fashion, with the Doctor using it to detonate mines in "The Sea Devils" and detect radiation in "The Three Doctors." This decision to downplay it continued when Pertwee was replaced by Tom Baker, although the device was still used. In "Robot," it was again used to destroy mines and unlock doors.
The Fifth Doctor, played by Peter Davison, was the last to use the original Sonic Screwdriver. It was used to help build the Zero Cabinet that would stabilize his regeneration in "Castrovalva" and was used, along with a pencil, to disable androids in "Four to Doomsday." It was finally destroyed in "The Visitation" by a Terileptil alien intent on stopping the Doctor escaping from confinement. This was a conscious decision by the production staff at the time, intended to remove a device that could seemingly do anything.
The device returned with the Doctor in 2005, and the version used by the 10th and 11th Doctors proved to be the most versatile yet. The ninth Doctor used it to get cash from a cash machine in "The Long Game," reconnect barbed wire in "The Doctor Dances" and reverse a teleporter in "Boomtown." The 10th used it to crack glass in "Army of Ghosts," detonate an explosive device in "Doomsday" and scan Donna Noble in "The Runaway Bride."
The traumatic nature of the 10th Doctor's regeneration and the TARDIS' crash landing following it damaged this screwdriver, and it was later destroyed when the 11th Doctor attempted to use it in "The Eleventh Hour." This has been used for everything from making a Star Whale's voice audible in "The Beast Below" and opening the door to a mysterious time ship in "The Lodger" to scanning Stonehenge in "The Pandorica Opens." His screwdriver is longer, has a green light at one end and deploys clawlike appendages when activated.