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The Magazine for SMall Science

What is Nanotechnology? A Guide

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Contents
Introduction .......................................... 3 Background ........................................... 4 From Micro to Nano .............................. 4 New Applications .................................. 5 Nano for Healthcare ........................... 6-7 Nano for theEnvironment.................. 8-9
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Nanomaterials .................................... 10 Nanoparticles ...................................... 10 Carbon Nanotubes .............................. 11 Textiles ................................................ 12 Scents and Flavours ............................ 13 Food and Drink.................................... 13 The Car Industry ..................................14 Are There Risks? .................................. 15
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Introduction
Nanotechnology is an exciting area of scientific development which promises ‘more for less’. It offers ways to create smaller, cheaper, lighter and faster devices that can do more and cleverer things, use less raw materials and consume less energy. There are many examples of the application of nanotechnologyfrom the simple to the complex. For example, there are nano coatings which can repel dirt and reduce the need for harmful cleaning agents, or prevent the spread of hospitalborne infections. New-generation hip implants can be made more ‘body friendly’ because they have a nanoscale topography that encourages acceptance by the cells in their vicinity. Moving on to more complex products, a good exampleof the application of nanotechnology is a mobile phone, which has changed dramatically in a few years – becoming smaller and smaller, while paradoxically, growing cleverer and faster – and cheaper!

'Nanotechnology is more for less'
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Background
Nanotechnology originates from the Greek word meaning “dwarf”. A nanometre is one billionth (10-9m) of a metre, which is tiny, only thelength of ten hydrogen atoms, or about one hundred thousandth of the width of a hair! Although scientists have manipulated matter at the nanoscale for centuries, calling it physics or chemistry, it was not until a new generation of microscopes were invented in the nineteen eighties in IBM, Switzerland that the world of atoms and molecules could be visualized and managed. In simple terms,nanotechnology can be defined as ‘engineering at a very small scale’, and this term can be applied to many areas of research and development – from medicine to manufacturing to computing, and even to textiles and cosmetics. It can be difficult to imagine exactly by how much this greater understanding of the world of atoms and molecules has and will affect our lives and the everyday objects we see around us,but some of the areas where nanotechnologies are set to make a difference are described in the following pages.

From Micro to Nano
Nanotechnology, in one sense, is the natural continuation of the miniaturization revolution that we have witnessed over the last decade, where millionth of a metre (10 -6m) tolerances in engineered products have became commonplace, for example, in the automotiveand aerospace industries enabling the construction of higher quality and safer vehicles and planes. It was the computer industry that kept on pushing the limits of miniaturization, and many devices we see today have nano features – such as cameras, DVD players, car airbag pressure sensors and inkjet printers.

New applications
Because of the opportunities nanotechnology offers in creating newfeatures and functions, it is already providing the solutions to many long-standing medical, social and environmental problems. Also, because of its potential for business, nanotechnology is of global interest. It is attracting more public funding than any other area of technology, estimated at around 6 billion dollars worldwide in 2010 (nanoposts.com). It is also the one area of research that is...