1. Nanotechnology and Its Impact on Your Future
Nanotechnology Research Center
Georgia Institute of Technology
Funding Improving Teacher Quality State Grants Program

2. Why should you know something about Nanotechnology?
The National Science Foundation estimates that by the year 2015 there will be a need for 2 million workers worldwide in the fields of nanoscience and nanotechnology.
An additional 5 million workers will be needed in support areas for these fields.
By 2015, nanotechnology is expected to be a $3 trillion “industry”
Point out to students that the year 2015 is not too far in the future. The 2 million workers will be researchers and engineers. The 5 million workers will be the people with Bachelors, Associates, and Technical Degrees. Point out that in less than 2 years the expected dollar amount has doubled from 1.5 trillion to 3 trillion.

3. What is a “nano”? A nano is one billionth of a meter or 10-9 m
A normal person can walk 32 kilometers or about 20 miles in one day. If a person were shrunk so that they were one nanometer tall, how long would it take them to walk the length of a dollar bill?
24 years
Each bullet will click in one at a time Ask question, give several students a chance to guess before providing the answer. You may want to hold up a dollar bill.

4. What is Nanotechnology?
The science of manipulating atoms and molecules to make new materials and devices.
Interdisciplinary – where science and engineering interconnect
Occurs at the nanometer range
One nanometer is 10-9 meters or about 3 atoms long. For comparison, a human hair is about 60-80,000 nanometers wide
The definition for nanotechnology may be different depending on the source of the definition. You may want students to feel their hairs when you are discussing the width of a hair.

5. Two Parts of Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology is often divided into two parts:
Nanoscience – where researchers learn about the chemical and physical properties of materials at the nanometer (nm) scale. Materials at nm are called nanostructures. They are the smallest things that can be made.
Nanotechnology – where researchers develop and apply materials at this scale to develop new products or methods; i.e., turning nanostructures into useable tools and applications
Science researches look for unique processes and materials and technology looks for ways to use these unique materials.

6. Unique Properties and Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology involves the manufacturing and application of instruments and materials that have unique properties because of their small size.
At the nanoscale, properties of materials behave differently and are said to behave under atomic and molecular rules.
Researchers are using these unique properties of materials at this small scale to create new and exciting tools and products in all areas of science and engineering.
Point out that lots of things are nano in size but do they have unique properties because of their nano size. The is what researchers are looking at.

7. Nanofabrication
Top-down nanofabrication – start with large material and bring it down to the nanoscale
Bottom-up nanofabrication – start with individual atoms and build upwards to make a nanostructure
Pass around some wafers that have circuits on them if you have those available.

8. Nanoscience Biomimicry
Ways scientists are attempting to mimic the wonders of nanoscience in nature:
sticky “feet”
strong spider silk
self-cleaning light reflecting butterfly wings
optical nanoscience
water collecting beetle backs
Click until an object shows up and then talk about it.
Sticky feet: Water striders are able to walk on water because of 1)surface area, 2) gravitational forces, 3) surface forces and surface adhesion (van der Waals forces), 4) a waxy (hydrophobic) surfaces on their legs, 5) microhairs on feet that have grooves that trap air. Beetles, flies, and geckos also have nanostructures that help them stick to walls.
Strong spider silk: Nanometer sized biodegradable threads of spider silk are stronger by weight than high tensile steel. It is also elastic enough to stretch up to 10 times its initial length.
Optical Nanoscience: The colors of beetle and butterfly wings come from the scattering of light. Light hits the nanostructures on their scales. These nanostructures are typically smaller than the wavelengths of visible light (smaller than 400 nanometers for example). Thin films are made of nanoparticles smaller than 400 nanometers, that produce iridescent (rainbow-like) colors when light strikes them. Iridescent colors change when you look at the object from different angles. Hawaiian bobtail squid contains bacterial the produce luminescent light on the nanoscale. The squid has stacks of silvery nanoplatelets made of protein that reflects the light downward from the squid. The light prevents it from casting a shadow when seen from above and forming a silhouette when seen from below. Bioluminescence in fireflies is nanoscale. The flow is caused by the exciting of electron by a firefly enzyme. When the electrons quiet down and go back to their stable state they give off light. The glow attracts mates and communicates.
Water Collecting Beetles: Namib desert beetle collects drinking water using its wings which are waxed and covered with raised unwaxed nanobumps. The bumps attract water (hydrophilic) when enough water collects it rolls down the waxy areas which repel water (hydrophobic) into the beetles mouth. Six times a year the fog blows in from the Atlantic.
Toucan Beaks: The exterior of the toucan beak is made up of overlapping nanosized tiles of keratin the same protein that makes up hair and fingernails. The interior of the beak is a rigid foam made of a network of nanosized bonyfibers connected by membranes. This allows the beak to absorb high-energy impacts.
Other Examples: Living cells have been using their own nanoscale devices to create structures one atom or molecule at a time for millions of years. DNA is copied, proteins are formed and complex hormones are manufactured by cellular devices for more complex than the most advanced manufacturing processes.
tough and light toucan beaks
and the list could go on and on.
Taken from WebQuest Nanoscience in Nature by Jeanne Nye

9. Nanotechnology is not New!
Gold nanoparticles in glass are reflected as red
Ancient stained-glass makers knew if they put finely ground gold or silver in the glass they would get beautiful colors. They used nanosized gold and silver particles. Optical properties change with the nanoscale.
Ancient glass makers used gold and silver salts to get reds and yellows in stained glass. Point out to students the different colors of gold that have been ground to different nanosizes. Tell students this is exciting to chemist because it is like having a new periodic table.

10. What are some applications of Nanotechnology?

11. The electronics industry is getting smaller and faster all the time
The electronics industry is getting smaller and faster all the time. Computer chips pictured above contain millions of transistors to run a variety of electronic devices including computers, digital cameras, memory sticks, and traffic lights. Light-Emitting Diodes (LEDs ) found in traffic lights and display boards are the product of micro and nano-electronics research.

12. Medical and pharmaceutical products are important areas where nanoscience is being used to create new methods, resources, and products.
Top left to bottom right: Textured surfaces used to grow mono-layers of epithelial cells for burn victim patients; The secondometry plates picture represents the field of MEMs; silver bandages to prevent infection, calcium phosphate coated titanium structures for broken bones and implants; Mass spectrometry plates for use in the pharmaceutical industry and drug development; diabetic biocapule that houses insulin producing cells used to regulate sugar levels in blood stream; Radiation therapy capsule that combines silver and iodine 125 to produce a radioisotope and inhibit the growth of tumor cells; smart catheters that use ultrasound to locate narrowed arteries for stent deployment; humidity sensor used to monitor the breathing status of patients and maybe used in home sleep apnea kits, stents that are coated with thin films of time releasing drug molecules; and microneedles.

13. There are over 800 products on the market that either have nanostructures or have been developed through nanoprocesses.

14. Nano Careers Design Development National security Technical support
Research
Management
Packaging
Energy producer
Clothing design
Public Service
Fabrication
Patent Attorney
Environment
Sales
Teaching
Testing
Construction
And Many More
Homeland security and military applications are also big areas for applying nano to real world problems.

15. Education Technical Programs Associates (2 years) Bachelors (4 years)
Masters (6 years)
Doctorate (8 years)
Nanotechnology is an interdisciplinary field. It is where biology, chemistry, physics, and engineering interconnect. Engineers will need to know the basic sciences and scientists and medical researchers will need to have an understanding of engineering.
It is evident that we will need to develop a trained workforce to meet the more than 1 million employment opportunities that will occur over the next decade. The need for a skilled workforce to meet this challenge has been highlighted in two reports; Innovate “America ( council on competitiveness, 2004) and Assessing the Capacity of the W.S. Engineering Research Enterprise (National Academy of Engineering, 2005). The economic importance of nanoscience and nanotechnology has not yet been fully realized. The two reports noted here stressed the critical importance of technological innovation in W.S. competitiveness, productivity, and economic growth. Nanotechnology is seen as one of these technologically important fields and as noted in the Innovate America Report, “nanotechnology could impact the production of virtually every human-made object.” It is important that students be aware of the educational and career opportunities awaiting them.
Explain to students that they can enter this field with training at several different levels and that you do not need to be a research scientist with a doctorate to work in nano. Many states provide opportunities to gain two year degrees to work in nanotechnology research labs and industries.

16. Marcus Nanotechnology Building
2004—Planning and design started
August 2006—began construction
Spring 2009—building opens
Current status
95% complete
Cleanroom construction complete
Building:
190,000 gross square feet
30,000 SF cleanroom
50% fit-out opening day
Biological (organic) and physical sciences (inorganic) cleanroom side-by-side
Labs
15,000 SF support labs
Advanced characterization space in basement (future fit-out)
Largest cleanroom facility in the southeast. It is a unique facility because it has both organic and inorganic cleanrooms.

17. Cleanroom Layout
Organic Suites
E-Beam
Lithography
Future
Cleanroom
Standard
Semiconductor
Support
Bio/Chemical
Prep
Point out the red areas are for future cleanrooms. If you have wireless or Internet connection you can click on web site and see the cleanroom at MiRC. You must do nanomanufacturing in a cleanroom because dust particles are much larger than nano particles.
Live Cleanroom at MiRC:
Or Cleanroom Tour:

18. National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network
Cornell University
Harvard University
Howard University
Georgia Institute of Technology
Penn State University
University of Michigan
University of Minnesota
Washington University
University of Texas at Austin
University of Colorado at Boulder
Arizona State University
University of Washington
Stanford University
University of California, Santa Barbara
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network
Funded by the National Science Foundation
National Nanotechnology Initiative (
Network of 14 research universities that provide cleanroom space to people outside of the research university and works to educate the public about how nanotechnology is and will impact their lives.

19. NNIN Education Portal Launched July 2005 http://www.education.nnin.org
General Information on Nanotechnology for
Teachers
Students
Public
Nanooze- Children’s science magazine linked on nano.gov
Encourage students to go to website and pass out Nanooze magazine.