Nanoelectromechanical systems (NEMS) are a class of devices integrating electrical and mechanical functionality on the nanoscale. NEMS form the next logical miniaturization step from so-called microelectromechanical systems, or MEMS devices. NEMS typically integrate transistor-like nanoelectronics with mechanical actuators, pumps, or motors, and may thereby form physical, biological, and chemical sensors. The name derives from typical device dimensions in the nanometer range, leading to low mass, high mechanical resonance frequencies, potentially large quantum mechanical effects such as zero point motion, and a high surface-to-volume ratio useful for surface-based sensing mechanisms. Applications include accelerometers and sensors to detect chemical substances in the air.
Phaedon Avouris is a Greek chemical physicist and materials scientist. He is an IBM Fellow and was formerly the group leader for Nanometer Scale Science and Technology at the Thomas J. Watson Research Center in Yorktown Heights, New York.
Nanocomposite is a multiphase solid material where one of the phases has one, two or three dimensions of less than 100 nanometers (nm) or structures having nano-scale repeat distances between the different phases that make up the material.
Charles M. Lieber is an American chemist, inventor, nanotechnologist, and writer. In 2011, Lieber was named the leading chemist in the world for the decade 2000–2010 by Thomson Reuters, based on the impact of his scientific publications. He is known for his contributions to the synthesis, assembly and characterization of nanoscale materials and nanodevices, the application of nanoelectronic devices in biology, and as a mentor to numerous leaders in nanoscience.
Nader Engheta is an Iranian-American scientist. He has made pioneering contributions to the fields of metamaterials, transformation optics, plasmonic optics, nanophotonics, graphene photonics, nano-materials, nanoscale optics, nano-antennas and miniaturized antennas, physics and reverse-engineering of polarization vision in nature, bio-inspired optical imaging, fractional paradigm in electrodynamics, and electromagnetics and microwaves.
Nanoelectronics refers to the use of nanotechnology in electronic components. The term covers a diverse set of devices and materials, with the common characteristic that they are so small that inter-atomic interactions and quantum mechanical properties need to be studied extensively. Some of these candidates include: hybrid molecular/semiconductor electronics, one-dimensional nanotubes/nanowires or advanced molecular electronics.
Nanobatteries are fabricated batteries employing technology at the nanoscale, particles that measure less than 100 nanometers or 10−7 meters. These batteries may be nano in size or may use nanotechnology in a macro scale battery. Nanoscale batteries can be combined to function as a macrobattery such as within a nanopore battery.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to nanotechnology:
David Carroll is a U.S. physicist, materials scientist and nanotechnologist, Fellow of the American Physical Society, and director of the Center for Nanotechnology and Molecular Materials at Wake Forest University. He has contributed to the field of nanoscience and nanotechnology through his work in nanoengineered cancer therapeutics, nanocomposite-based display and lighting technologies, high efficiency nanocomposite photovoltaics and thermo/piezo-electric generators.
NanoIntegris is a nanotechnology company based in Boisbriand, Quebec specializing in the production of enriched, single-walled carbon nanotubes. In 2012, NanoIntegris was acquired by Raymor Industries, a large-scale producer of single-wall carbon nanotubes using the plasma torch process.
The ISO/TS 80004 series of standards, from the International Organization for Standardization, describe vocabulary for nanotechnology and its applications. These were largely motivated by health, safety and environment concerns, many of them originally elaborated by Eric Drexler in his 1985 Engines of Creation and echoed in more recent research. The ISO standards simply describe vocabulary or terminology by which a number of critical discussions between members of various stakeholder communities, including the public and political leaders, can begin. Drexler, in Chapter 15 of his 1985 work, explained how such consultation and the evolution of new social media and mechanisms to make objective scientific determinations regardless of political and industrial and public pressures, would be important to the evolution of the field. Nonetheless, it took a quarter-century for the ISO to agree and eventually standardize on this terminology.
The applications of nanotechnology, commonly incorporate industrial, medicinal, and energy uses. These include more durable construction materials, therapeutic drug delivery, and higher density hydrogen fuel cells that are environmentally friendly. Being that nanoparticles and nanodevices are highly versatile through modification of their physiochemical properties, they have found uses in nanoscale electronics, cancer treatments, vaccines, hydrogen fuel cells, and nanographene batteries.
Mark S. Lundstrom is an American electrical engineering researcher, educator, and author. He is known for contributions to the theory, modeling, and understanding of semiconductor devices, especially nanoscale transistors, and as the creator of the nanoHUB, a major online resource for nanotechnology. Lundstrom is Don and Carol Scifres Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and in 2020 served as Acting Dean of the College of Engineering at Purdue University, in West Lafayette, Indiana.
Lee Young-hee is a South Korean physicist. He is a distinguished professor in physics and energy science at Sungkyunkwan University as a SKKU fellow. He is also director of the Center for Integrated Nanostructure Physics in the Institute for Basic Science (IBS). He has been a Clarivate Analytics Highly Cited Researcher in the cross-field category in 2018–2023.
Nicole Grobert FRSC FYAE is a German-British materials chemist. She is a professor of nanomaterials at the Department of Materials at the University of Oxford, fellow of Corpus Christi College, Oxford, and a Royal Society industry fellow at Williams Advanced Engineering. Grobert is the chair of the European Commission's Group of Chief Scientific Advisors.
There are many water purifiers available in the market which use different techniques like boiling, filtration, distillation, chlorination, sedimentation and oxidation. Currently nanotechnology plays a vital role in water purification techniques. Nanotechnology is the process of manipulating atoms on a nanoscale. In nanotechnology, nanomembranes are used with the purpose of softening the water and removal of contaminants such as physical, biological and chemical contaminants. There are variety of techniques in nanotechnology which uses nanoparticles for providing safe drinking water with a high level of effectiveness. Some techniques have become commercialized.
Jean-Pierre Leburton is the Gregory E. Stillman Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and professor of Physics at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign. He is also a full-time faculty member in the Nanoelectronics and Nanomaterials group of the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology. He is known for his work on semiconductor theory and simulation, and on nanoscale quantum devices including quantum wires, quantum dots, and quantum wells. He studies and develops nanoscale materials with potential electronic and biological applications.
Marija Drndic is the Fay R. and Eugene L. Langberg Professor of Physics at the University of Pennsylvania. She works on two-dimensional materials and novel spectroscopic techniques.
Elisa Riedo is a physicist and researcher known for her contributions in condensed matter physics, nanotechnology and engineering. She is the Herman F. Mark Chair Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the New York University Tandon School of Engineering and the director of the picoForce Lab.
Ramakrishna Podila is an Indian-born American physicist and nanomaterials researcher. He is currently an Associate Professor of Physics in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Clemson University and is the director of the Clemson Nano-bio lab. He is known for his interdisciplinary research at the interface of physics, biology, and nanoscience. His lab integrates the principles of condensed matter physics, optical spectroscopy, and physiological chemistry to understand physics at the nanoscale and nano-bio interfaces.
