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February 26, 2024
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Technology is getting smaller and more efficient every passing day. Thus, if you are a nerd like me, nanotechnology would surely excite you.
From packing more transistors in a chip to delivering drugs through nanobots, nanotechnology helps achieve it all. A decade ago, nanochip implants were a science fiction concept, but today it is an achievable task, thanks to Elon Musk’s Neuralink. And guess what; nanotechnology is the tech behind developments like Neuralink.
What is nanotechnology? Tech of the future? The nerdy topic for tech-lovers?
In layman’s terms, nanotechnology involves understanding how materials work at the atomic level. So, for instance, gold is not gold in color when seen at the nanoscale.
So, tie your curiosity seatbelts tight as we ride to discover this novel technology in this post.
Nanotechnology was first introduced in 1959 by the Nobel Prize physicist Sir Richard Feynman. He famously said – “There’s plenty of room at the bottom.” Further, nanotechnology was developed as a field in the 1980s with a scanning tunneling microscope to view individual atoms. The discovery of fullerene in 1985 was yet another breakthrough in nanotechnology as it helped develop carbon nanotubes.
In simple words, nanotechnology uses matter at an ultra-small (nano) scale (1-100nm) to create products and systems with novel capabilities.
What do we mean by nanoscale? Well, one nanometer (nm) is one-billionth of a meter, and there are over 25 million nanometers in one inch. So if we take planet Earth as one particle, one nanometer of Earth would be the size of a soccer ball.
In the nanoscience world, materials exhibit different properties, i.e., the physical and chemical properties of the matter change. We can manipulate properties like color, electrical conductivity, melting temperature, hardness, strength, etc., and create revolutionary applications with nanotechnology.
Today, screen-based devices (TVs, phones, iPads) come with nanostructured polymer films called organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). Thanks to this technology, OLED screens are brighter and have better picture quality. Also, many manufacturers are experimenting with graphene to develop flexible touchscreens. Carbon nanotubes can replace silicon-based chips, as these tubes can produce smaller, faster, lighter, and more efficient microchips and devices.
Nanotechnology can also increase the storage capacity of devices. With nanotechnology, one can decrease the bit size of the stored information while also maintaining high retrieval speeds. Further, nanotechnology is unlocking more advancements in communications technology by nanoscale structuring of optical devices. Believe it or not, this technology is the future of electronics.
Nanotechnology is unlocking new potentials in medical science. Transporting drugs to specific areas in the body is no longer science fiction. Nanotechnology has improved drug-delivery systems for cancer, heart diseases, diabetes, and other age-related illnesses. In 2014, scientists developed nanocages which, in theory, can deliver cancer-killing drugs at the molecular level.
With nanotechnology, doctors could reduce the dosage required as the technology allowed them to precisely deliver the drug to the required location in the body. Nanotechnology is also helping in tissue engineering. For example, studies are in full swing to use nanofibres for regenerating damaged spinal nerves in the future.
Nanotechnology is heavily used in combating energy-related issues. Improving the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of solar panels, creating energy-efficient batteries, improving fuel efficiency by using better catalysis- you name it, and nanotechnology is helping in every domain. For example, Kyoto University has leveraged nanoscience to double the electricity conversion rate of solar panels. The best part is that nanocomponents have better thermal insulation, and thus, they help save energy.
Researchers are also combating water contamination with nanotechnology. For example, they are developing nanostructured filters to remove virus cells and other impurities from water. Also, you can use nano fabric towels in oil-spill clean-up operations as they can absorb 20 times their weight in oil.
Other environment-friendly applications of this technology include air purification with ions, wastewater purification with nanofiltration, and the use of nanocatalysts to make chemical reactions less polluting.
Nanobiosensors are a potential solution for ensuring food security. These sensors detect the presence of pathogens, salmonella, and other contaminants in food. Moreover, nanocomposites increase mechanical and thermal resistance and decrease oxygen transfer in packaged food products, improving food production.
Apart from these applications, nanotechnology is also used in fields like cosmetics, the automotive industry, and textiles, among others.
Now that you know the applications of nanotechnology, you might wonder – How are nano-sized devices made?
Let’s find out!
The process of designing and manufacturing nano-sized devices is called nanofabrication.
There are two approaches of nanofabrication –
In this strategy, current structures are miniaturized at the nanometric scale (1-100nm). This approach is primarily used in electronics.
Top-down fabrication mainly involves printing techniques using short-wavelength optical sources. The key advantage of this approach is that the parts do not need assembling as they are patterned and built-in place.
Bottom-up fabrication refers to building structures atom-by-atom. In this approach, you start with a nanostructure and create a larger device by assembling it. The bottom-up style is inspired by biology. Like nature harnesses chemical forces to create life structures, the bottom-up approach uses chemical forces to form nanostructures.
In simple words, this approach involves using physical or chemical forces to assemble basic units into larger structures. Thus, the bottom-up approach complements the top-down strategy as the size of the component keeps decreasing.
Like any other technology, nanotechnology also has some dark spots. The primary concern is how manufactured nanoparticles would react with biological systems. For example, some studies show that nanomaterials can lead to brain diseases. Plus, some evidence indicates that nanoparticles could also lead to genetic damage.
Moreover, the way nanomaterials interact with the surrounding environment also requires further study. The behavior of nanoparticles in a laboratory cannot determine how they will behave in the water, soil, or air. Some experiments show that nanoparticles could be harmful to invertebrates and fish.
Nevertheless, appropriate risk assessment and controls could reduce the harmful effects significantly.
Nanotechnology is seeing things through microscopic eyes. This science of manipulating nanoparticles is unlocking new potentials – from efficient transitions to biohacking- you name it.
Considering the vast leaps that nanotechnology has made in this short span, it is wise to say that this technology is the next big thing, or perhaps it already is.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
