What is Nanotechnology?

The word 'nano' originates from the Greek for dwarf. Nanotechnology is an investigation into materials at the nanometer scale (a nanometer is defined as 10^-9 meters; the nanoscale is between 100 nanometers down to about 0.2 nanometers — the size of atoms). Nanotechnologists aim to understand, control, and manipulate properties of materials at this scale — properties that are often different or not evident at all in the bulk material. The aim is then to apply these properties to generate new or improved products or processes — nanotechnology often enables the engineering of specific, carefully targeted behaviors in materials. Finally, nanotechnology is usually a multi-disciplinary effort, drawing in and uniting physics, chemistry, biology, materials science, and engineering.

Nanotechnology is an intensely practical subject, aiming to:

Examine matter at a fundamental level
Discover novel properties that are apparent at that scale
Understand and control what causes those novel properties
Apply those properties to create better products and processes.

The work involved in achieving this generally follows a pathway from initial research to final product that brings in expertise from many different disciplines and uses a huge variety of tools and techniques.

Why is Nanotechnology Important?

Because nanotechnology gives us an understanding of how structures (such as polymers, crystals, drugs, and proteins) are made at such a fundamental level (from their atoms up to molecular level) and how their molecular arrangements can be altered to alter the macroscopic properties of a material, it gives us the means to:

Design materials more efficiently
Produce materials that are more solution-focused and better fitted for their intended purpose
Develop materials with enhanced properties, such as drug delivery systems that take their payload only to a certain type of cell, carpets that kill bacteria, car body panels that are lighter but far stronger and glass that will clean itself of any dirt and dust
Reduce the consumption of resources both in the pre-manufacture testing phase and in the manufacture of finished products (making chemistry greener)
And this is all enabled by the work involved in gaining a better understanding of fundamental chemical, physical and material phenomena.

The most important thing to take away from this site is the idea that although nanotechnology implies working at and understanding matter at the nanoscale, the ultimate aim of nanotechnology is to make improvements to existing large-scale systems, processes and products.

Materials and products

Find out more about the basic building blocks of nanodesign, and what products have been made from them

Nano debates!

Not only is there a lot of media and investor interest about nanotechnology, but people - the 'general public' - are starting to want to know more. In 2004, the Royal Society (UK) commissioned a report into the public understanding of, and concerns regarding nanotechnology - and the results make for very interesting reading. This was later followed with a similar investigation in the States, carried out by the National Nanotechnology Initiative. If you would like to find out more about what the lay person fears - or expects - from nanotechnology, why not start with reading the Royal Society report in our White Papers section?

The two reports show an obvious desire by the scientific community to communicate the potential and excitement of nanotechnology to an increasingly knowledgeable, and occasionally concerned, lay public. To help this communication effort, we have a Nanotechnology debates page, where we have gathered some fuel for those of you who would like a more comprehensive view of the issues surrounding the new technology. Currently, the page looks at some of the misconceptions about nanotechnology - many of which were raised in the two reports - and gives you the real story behind the headlines.

What's next?

Nanotechnology is also important as an excellent demonstration of the importance and power of Rational Design. What is Rational Design?