Nanotechnology Takes Center Stage

Solicitations totaling more than $101 million have been released by the Department of Defense, Department of Energy, and the National Science Foundation (see the National Nanotechnology Initiative webpage at http://www.nano.gov for more details on each opportunity). The amount of funding available is one more indication of the importance that nanotechnology is expected to play in the future. The policy and programmatic implications for science, technology, and economic development programs will be significant as more applications are perfected and commercialized.

Also known as molecular manufacturing, nanotechnology has been theory since 1959 when Nobel-winning physicist Richard Feynman identified the possibility of maneuvering things atom-by-atom. It has now gone well beyond theory and into practice, with the announcement last summer by Lucent Technologies that it had delivered the first optical switch which will enhance speed and reliability of Internet and data transmission as never imagined.

The term nanotechnology comes from nanometer which is one-billionth of a meter long. That’s roughly the width of about four atoms across and 1,000 times narrower than a human hair. The idea is that structures can be built from the atom-up, creating materials with amazing purity and strength.

The potential applications for nanotechnology are staggering. In announcing the National Nanotechnology Initiative last summer, NSF used the following vivid examples of the potential of this technology:

• Storing the entire contents of the Library of Congress in a device the size of a sugar cube;
• Creating materials 10 times stronger than steel but at a fraction of the weight, making all kinds of land, sea, air and space vehicles lighter and more fuel efficient.
• Improving the computer speed and efficiency of minuscule transistors and memory chips by factors of millions making today’s Pentium III’s seem slow;
• Detecting cancerous tumors that are only a few cells in size;
• Removing the finest contaminants from water and air, promoting a cleaner environment and potable water at an affordable cost; and
• Doubling the current levels of energy efficiency of solar cells.

With the federal government taking the lead, states and the academic community are beginning to devise ways to take advantage of molecular manufacturing and promote its development. A few examples:

• President Clinton’s FY 2001 budget requested a $225 million increase for nanotechnology research and development. Some 70 percent of that new money will go to university-based research. NSF has been designated the lead agency in implementing the goals and objectives of the National Nanotechnology Initiative and has a $150 million appropriation in the FY 2001 budget for the initiative. Other participating federal agencies in the initiative, including the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Commerce, are still awaiting Congressional action on their FY 2001 budgets.
• In October 2000 the states of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware held the second of several meetings on a Regional Nanotechnology Initiative. Each state has held, or plans to hold, additional conferences of their own.
• With funding from NSF and the state, Pennsylvania is spending $10.5 million over three years to establish a Nanotechnology Center. The state envisions the Nanotechnology Center to be the nucleus of a regional effort joining corporations, universities and economic development.
• Georgia Tech hosted a conference on nanoscience and nanotechnology in October. The conference brought together researchers from universities and national laboratories in the Southeast to exchange information and on the expertise that resides in various organizations and to explore teaming opportunities for collaborative research.
• New Jersey is hoping to become the nano-structure center of the nation. In early 2000, the state’s Commission on Science and Technology awarded one of six technology transfer and commercialization grants to NanoPac Technologies which is working to commercialize a patented technology in the processing of extremely fine ceramic, nanopowders.
• With NSF funding, the University of Washington recently announced the country’s first doctoral program in nanotechnology at its Center for Nanotechnology.

Beyond the research implications, application of nanotechnology will have significant ramifications for practically every industry sector. The economic and policy implications for many states and communities will be staggering. Creating products from the “bottom-up” requires less materials and creates less pollution, and very few workers. Nanotechnology also demands completely new manufacturing processes. Working on the atomic level, labor on most production lines will be replaced almost entirely by robots, computers, petri dishes, and clean rooms.

For more information on nanotechnology, visit: http://www.nano.gov or http://www.nanoindustries.com/ or http://www.foresight.org/NanoRev/  or http://nanozine.com/