The big problems driving the development of nanotechnology
By Tim Brinkhof | Published: 2024-12-08 16:00:00 | Source: The Future – Big Think
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At the 1959 meeting of the American Physical Society at Caltech, Nobel Prize-winning physicist Richard Feynman said He gave the talk Titled “There’s Plenty of Room at the Bottom,” it opened with a simple question: “Why can’t we write the entire twenty-four volumes of the Encyclopedia Britannica on the head of a pin?” His answer – us He canIf we built machines capable of performing tasks the size of a molecule, at that point that was closer to science fiction than science. However, Feynman managed to spark the imagination of his peers, and began the development of a new field of research that we now know as nanotechnology.
Today, nanotechnology can be defined as the manipulation of matter with a size ranging from 1 to 100 nanometers. Given that the tip of an average pin has a diameter of 235,000 nanometers, it’s safe to say that nanotechnology has made huge strides since Feynman stepped onto the stage in 1959. Nowadays, some of the most exciting developments in this field are happening at MIT.nano, an interdisciplinary research facility at MIT that first opened its doors in 2018.
“One of the most important advances we have made is the ability to image at the subatomic level using electron microscopes,” the lab’s associate director, Brian Anthony, told Freethink after speaking at the conference. Emtechan annual conference on emerging technologies hosted by MIT’s Cambridge campus. He explains that nanotechnology is about more than just making existing gadgets smaller. As any quantum physicist can tell you, the way matter behaves varies greatly depending on how big or small an observer zooms in. This means that in order to develop a device capable of delivering drugs to individual cells in our bodies, we first have to understand how things actually work on this microscopic scale.
After decades of slow but steady progress, research conducted at MIT (MIT.nano) is beginning to gain momentum. “We can now freeze matter in place and observe phenomena at this scale, such as atoms moving or dislocations forming,” Anthony explains. In this interview, he dispels common misconceptions about nanotechnology and nanoscience, and reveals the huge contributions these deceptively small fields have made to civilization.
The world is built on the nano scale, but because we are macro-scale beings, we tend to think big.
Big breakthroughs, small technology
Ironically, the field of nanotechnology is much larger than people think. “The short answer is that ‘nano’ just means ‘small,'” Anthony says. “But to work at the nanoscale, you also need tools that control the environment at that scale: making sure the air is clean, reducing the number of particles, and keeping vibrations to a minimum.”
At the atomic and subatomic levels, even the slightest changes in temperature or humidity can profoundly alter the measurements extracted from an experiment, which is why MIT.nano Labs are specifically designed to give researchers as much control as possible over their facilities, allowing them to regulate everything from humidity to air filtration.
“Many ideas have been exaggerated or overlooked because we had no economically viable way to monitor them.”
Brian Anthony
Another common misconception about nanotechnology is that it is exclusively about nanoparticles. “Although some nanotechnology research involves nanoparticles, that is not what MIT.nano is primarily about,” says Anthony. “We aim to provide the infrastructure to conduct nanoscale research in a variety of disciplines.” He emphasizes that nanotechnology research has great applications: “When you look at the strength of materials, it’s built on the nanoscale. The world is built on the nanoscale, but because we are macro-scale beings, we tend to think on a macro scale. Everything from Damascus steel to semiconductors involves nanotechnology.”
The same applies to photonics (light generation, detection, and processing). A variety of emerging technologies, from self-driving cars to smart glasses, require miniaturized optical systems capable of converting the surrounding environment into usable data. On the R&D side, these types of systems can also be used to monitor and study nanoparticles. “If you look at the history of microfluidics, or the behavior of fluids passing through microchannels, you will find that many ideas were exaggerated or overlooked because we didn’t have an economically viable way to observe them,” Anthony says.
Fortunately, this is no longer the case. Thanks to advances in integrated photonics, researchers now have the means to measure not only the size of many particles, but also their chemical composition. According to Anthony, the next challenge is not to improve the complexity of the sensors themselves, but to find a way for low-concentration molecules to come into contact with those sensors.
One of the biggest developments in nanotechnology in the next five to ten years will be the opening of a center Semiconductor Institute “Digital Twin”.Which will enable microchip manufacturers to develop and test products By default Before they enter the production stage. With significant funding from the federal government, we hope the institute will not only boost the domestic microchip industry in the United States, but will also foster innovation in other fields such as biotechnology, where researchers will similarly be able to conduct virtual nano-scale tests before committing to real-world experiments.
Greater obstacles
Among the biggest obstacles facing contemporary nanotechnology research is – not surprisingly – the dual challenge of making devices smaller and More sophisticated. “Traditionally, we were able to miniaturize devices and connect them on circuit boards,” Anthony says. “Now, we need to put the electrical, optical and fluid connections – all into one package.”
Fortunately, funding for this type of research is on the rise – partly due to geopolitical conflict. For decades, China has been the global center for microchip manufacturing, an essential part of the nanotechnology industry Based in TaiwanIt is an island state that, according to Chinese leader Xi Jinping, is destined to reunite, by force if necessary, with mainland China. As diplomatic relations between Taipei and Beijing cooled, the United States – Taiwan’s main ally and trading partner – began promoting initiatives aimed at redeveloping and manufacturing microchips, which in turn would require funding nanotechnology research.
“Nanotechnology is often hidden behind walls, in laboratories or factories… We try to get students into factories during their first year.”
Brian Anthony
According to Anthony, legislation like the CHIPS Act – Bill of 2022 provides economic support Incentives For microchip manufacturers – this has dramatically accelerated the amount of funding available for micro and nano technologies, even if federal dollars represent only a small portion of the total investment.
Another major obstacle to nanotechnology development worth considering is the availability of talent. Specifically, students. At MIT, the number of students studying nanotechnology is increasing on an annual basis—a phenomenon that Anthony attributes in part to a decline in interest in big tech companies and computer programming. “In the past, when you saw companies like Google and Amazon hiring programmers with high salaries, it was easy to be pushed down this path. Looking to the future, tools like AI may be transformative. ChatGPT in particular could become a killer application for programming, helping non-programmers write code. Although it still needs debugging, it can greatly improve programming efficiency, which could reduce the demand for human programmers.”
As a result, “people may begin to look for other avenues where practical skills can be applied. Manufacturing – whether at the nano or macro level – could be a natural way to achieve this.” He adds that at MIT, students are not only showing higher levels of interest in nanotechnology, but also in the physical sciences, which also require hands-on work that artificial intelligence – for now – cannot replace.
Investing in introductory nanotechnology programs for high schools can lead to increased college enrollment rates. While many high schools offer after-school courses or programs that expose their students to a wide variety of scientific disciplines, including engineering and computer science, nanotechnology requires equipment and programming that the average high school cannot afford.
As a result, Anthony concludes, “Nanotechnology is often hidden behind walls, in laboratories or factories, so it is not something that most high school students can see or touch.” That’s why, at MIT, “we try to get students to join graduate school during their first year, so they have more time to explore and decide if this is something they want to pursue.” The MIT.nano building was designed with this in mind, with large windows that allow students to see what’s there It happens indoorsThis piqued their curiosity in the same way that Feynman had piqued his peers.
this condition Originally published by our sister site Freethink.
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