Outline of nanotechnology

Last updated October 23, 2025

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to nanotechnology:

Branches of nanotechnology

Green nanotechnology – use of nanotechnology to enhance the environmental-sustainability of processes currently producing negative externalities. It also refers to the use of the products of nanotechnology to enhance sustainability.
Nanoengineering – practice of engineering on the nanoscale.

Multi-disciplinary fields that include nanotechnology

Nanobiotechnology – intersection of nanotechnology and biology.^[1]
Ceramic engineering – science and technology of creating objects from inorganic, non-metallic materials.
Materials science – interdisciplinary field applying the properties of matter to various areas of science and engineering. It investigates the relationship between the structure of materials at atomic or molecular scales and their macroscopic properties.
Molecular engineering

Contributing fields

Nanoscience

Nanoelectronics – use of nanotechnology on electronic components, including transistors so small that inter-atomic interactions and quantum mechanical properties need to be studied extensively.
Nanomechanics – branch of nanoscience studying fundamental mechanical (elastic, thermal and kinetic) properties of physical systems at the nanometer scale.
Nanophotonics – study of the behavior of light on the nanometer scale.

Other contributing fields

Risks of nanotechnology

Implications of nanotechnology

Applications of nanotechnology

Energy applications of nanotechnology
Quantum computing – computation using quantum mechanical phenomena, such as superposition and entanglement, to perform data operations.
List of nanotechnology applications

Nanomaterials

Nanomaterials – field that studies materials with morphological features on the nanoscale, and especially those that have special properties stemming from their nanoscale dimensions.

Fullerenes and carbon forms

Fullerene – any molecule composed entirely of carbon, in the form of a hollow sphere, ellipsoid, or tube. Fullerene spheres and tubes have applications in nanotechnology.

Allotropes of carbon –
Aggregated diamond nanorods –
Buckypaper –
Carbon nanofoam –
Carbon nanotube –
- Nanoknot –
- Nanotube membrane –
Fullerene chemistry –
- Bingel reaction –
- Endohedral hydrogen fullerene –
- Prato reaction –
Endohedral fullerenes –
Fullerite –
Graphene –
- Graphene nanoribbon –
Potential applications of carbon nanotubes –
Timeline of carbon nanotubes –

Nanoelectronics

Nanoelectronics –

Molecular electronics

Molecular electronics –

Nanolithography

Nanolithography –

Molecular nanotechnology

Molecular nanotechnology –

Grey goo –
Mechanosynthesis –
Molecular assembler –
Molecular modelling –
Nanorobotics –
- Smartdust –
- Utility fog –
Nanochondria –
Programmable matter –
Self reconfigurable –
Self-replication –

Devices

Microscopes and other devices

Microscopy –

Atomic force microscope –
Electron microscopy -
Scanning tunneling microscope –
Scanning probe microscope –
Sarfus –

Notable organizations in nanotechnology

List of nanotechnology organizations

Government

Advocacy and information groups

American Chemistry Council (US)
American Nano Society (US)
Center for Responsible Nanotechnology (US)
Foresight Institute (US)
Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies (global)

Manufacturers

Cerion Nanomaterials, Metal / Metal Oxide / Ceramic Nanoparticles (US)
OCSiAl, Carbon Nanotubes (Luxembourg)

Notable figures in nanotechnology

Phaedon Avouris - first electronic devices made out of carbon nanotubes
Gerd Binnig - co-inventor of the scanning tunneling microscope
Heinrich Rohrer - co-inventor of the scanning tunneling microscope
Vicki Colvin Director for the Center for Biological and Environmental Nanotechnology, Rice University
Eric Drexler - was the first to theorise about nanotechnology in depth and popularised the subject
Richard Feynman - gave the first mention of some of the distinguishing concepts in a 1959 talk, entitled There's Plenty of Room at the Bottom
Robert Freitas - nanomedicine theorist
Andre Geim - Discoverer of 2-D carbon film called graphene
Sumio Iijima - discoverer of carbon nanotube
Harry Kroto - co-discoverer of buckminsterfullerene
Akhlesh Lakhtakia - conceptualized sculptured thin films
Ralph Merkle - nanotechnology theorist
Carlo Montemagno - inventor ATP nanobiomechanical motor (UCLA)
Erwin Wilhelm Müller - invented the field ion microscope, and the atom probe
Chris Phoenix - co-founder of the Center for Responsible Nanotechnology
Uri Sivan - set up and led the Russell Berrie Nanotechnology Research Institute at Technion in Israel
Richard Smalley - co-discoverer of buckminsterfullerene
Norio Taniguchi - coined the term "nano-technology"
Mike Treder - co-founder of the Center for Responsible Nanotechnology
Joseph Wang - pioneer in electrochemical sensors exploiting nanostructured materials; synthetic nanomotors
Alex Zettl - Built the first molecular motor based on carbon nanotubes
Russell M. Taylor II - co-director of the UNC CISMM
Adriano Cavalcanti - nanorobot expert working at CAN
Lajos P. Balogh - editor in chief of the Precision Nanomedicine journal
Charles M. Lieber - pioneer on nanoscale materials (Harvard)

References

↑ Ehud Gazit, Plenty of room for biology at the bottom: An introduction to bionanotechnology. Imperial College Press, 2007, ISBN 978-1-86094-677-6
↑ Auplat, Claire (2012). "The challenges of nanotechnology policy making - Part 1". Global Policy. 3 (4): 492–500. doi:10.1111/j.1758-5899.2011.00159.x.
↑ Auplat, Claire (2013). "The challenges of nanotechnology policy making - Part 2". Global Policy. 4 (1): 101–107. doi:10.1111/j.1758-5899.2011.00160.x.

External links

NanoTechMap The online exhibition of nanotechnology featuring over 4000 registered companies
What is Nanotechnology? (A Vega/BBC/OU Video Discussion).
Course on Introduction to Nanotechnology
Nanex Project
SAFENANO A nanotechnology initiative of the Institute of Occupational Medicine
Glossary of Drug Nanotechnology

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[1] Ehud Gazit, Plenty of room for biology at the bottom: An introduction to bionanotechnology. Imperial College Press, 2007, ISBN 978-1-86094-677-6

[2] Auplat, Claire (2012). "The challenges of nanotechnology policy making - Part 1". Global Policy. 3 (4): 492–500. doi:10.1111/j.1758-5899.2011.00159.x.

[3] Auplat, Claire (2013). "The challenges of nanotechnology policy making - Part 2". Global Policy. 4 (1): 101–107. doi:10.1111/j.1758-5899.2011.00160.x.

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