Chapter: 1

Introduction

INTRODUCTION
NanoTechnology

Since about the year 2000, the word nanotechnology has encompassed materials and devices that are near atomic or molecular level in size. The nano prefixed is applied to a plethora of technologies to imply small size scale. Perhaps because we now have microscopes and instruments that let us actually see nanosized materials. We can appreciate the potential they offer.

Nanotechnology is not really a new field of study; it has been around since the beginning of time. In some respects, nanotechnology is well reflected in pure science such as chemistry and physics. In 1959, a lecture by physicists Richard Feynman suggested that new materials with fundamentally different properties could be developed by building and manipulating materials at their basic, molecule, or atomic level. This lecture probably initiated nanotechnology as a field of study.

Richard Feynman was awarded the Nobel Prize in physics in1965 for his contributions to quantum electrodynamics, a subject far removed from nanotechnology. Feynman was also a very gifted and flamboyant teacher and lecturer on science, and is regarded as one of the great theoretical physicists of his time. He had a wide range of interests beyond science from playing bongo drums to attempting to interpret Mayan hieroglyphics. The range his interest and wit can be appreciated by reading his lighthearted autobiographical book Surely Youre Joking, Mr. Feynman.

In 1960 he presented a visionary and prophetic lecture at a meeting of the American Physical Society, entitled There is Plenty of Room at the Bottom, where speculated on the possibility and potential of nanosized materials. He envisioned etching lines a few atoms wide beams of electrons, effectively predicting the existence of electron-beam lithography, which is

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Introduction

used today to make silicon chips. He proposed manipulating individual atoms to make new small structures having very different properties.

Nanotechnology is the engineering of functional systems at the molecular scale. This covers both current work and concepts that are more advanced. In its original sense, nanotechnology refers to the projected ability to construct items from the bottom up, using techniques and tools being developed today to make complete, high performance products. One nanometer (nm) is one billionth, or 109, of a meter.

By comparison, typical carbon-carbon bond lengths, or the spacing between these atoms in a molecule, are in the range 0.120.15 nm. a DNA double-helix has a diameter around 2 nm. On the other hand, the smallest cellular life-forms, the bacteria of the genus Mycoplasma, are around 200 nm in length.

By convention, nanotechnology is taken as the scale range 1 to 100 nm following the definition used by the National Nanotechnology Initiative in the US. The lower limit is set by the size of atoms (hydrogen has the smallest atoms, which are approximately a quarter of a nm diameter) since nanotechnology must build its devices from atoms and molecules. The upper limit is more or less arbitrary but is around the size that phenomena not observed in larger structures start to become apparent and can be made use of in the nano device.

These new phenomena make nanotechnology distinct from devices which are merely miniaturized versions of an equivalent macroscopic device; such devices are on a larger scale and come under the description of microtechnology. Figure shows how nanotechnology is organized into various areas of study and product development. This chapter will discuss nanotools and cite examples to illustrate the scope of nanotechnology activities in the areas of nanocompents and nanoparticles.

Chapter: 1
The spectrum of nanotechnology

Introduction

Nanotechnology

Nanotools SEM TEM STM AFM etc.

Nanomatreials

Nanodevices MEMS/NEMS Sensors Atomic transistors Photonics etc.

Nanomedicine Pharmaceuticals DNA alteration Cell level palliatives Detecting biological agents, etc.

Nanocomposites Plastics Metals Oxides Antimicrobial plastics

Nanoparticles Markers Additives Thermal sprays

Nanocoatings Graded PUD SAMs Tribocoatings

Nanosurface features Biomemetics Nanofeature creation

Nanomaterials In our definition, nanomaterials and nanotechnology concern the creation, manipulation and use of materials in the 1 to 100 nanometer (nm) size ranges. Materials in this size range have special properties because of their dimensions and high surface area [1-2]. A number of physical phenomena become pronounced as the size of the system decreases. These include statistical mechanical effects, as well as quantum mechanical effects, for example the quantum size effect where the electronic properties of solids are altered with great reductions in particle size. This effect does not come into play by going from

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Introduction

macro to micro dimensions. However, quantum effects become dominant when the nanometer size range is reached, typically at distances of 100 nanometers or less, the so called quantum realm. The special properties of Nanomaterials 1. Noble materials such as Pt and Au become very reactive and are capable of becoming catalysts to enable chemical reactions. 2. Stable metals such as aluminum become combustible. 3. Opaque materials such as copper become transparent. 4. Materials such as carbon fibers and tubes reach very high strength and stiffness. 5. Gravitational effects become diminished, while Vander walls and other bonding become pronounced. 6. Surface tension effects also become more pronounced. 7. As particle sizes approach the atomic level, quantum mechanical effects become significant. Nanoparticles Nanoparticles are generally considered to be a number of atoms or molecules bonded together with a radius of <100nm. A nanometer is 10-9 m or 10 , so particles having a radius of about 1000 can be considered to be nanoparticles. Any microscopic particle less than about 100 nanometers (nm) in diameter. In aerosol science, the term is often reserved for particles less than 50 nm in diameter; the term "ultrafine particles" is used for particles less than 100 nm in diameter

Chapter: 1

Introduction

Before addressing the details of the field of nanotechnology, it is worth reviewing the relative size scale of well-known items, starting with relative dimensions scales as shown in the following table 1.1 Table 1.1

Dimension scale km (kilometer) m (meter) mm (millimeter) m (micrometer) nm (nanometer) (Angstrom) pm (Pico meter)

Equivalent nanometers (nm) 1,000,000,000,000 1,000,000,000 1,000,000 1000 1 0.1 0.0001

In meter (m) 103 1 10-3 10-6 10-9 10-10 10-12

Methods of synthesis of Nanoparticles RF plasma Chemical methods Thermolysis Pulsed laser methods Sol - gel method Colloids methods