What Is Nanotechnology?
Nanotechnology should be understood as a complex of scientific and engineering disciplines that study processes occurring on the atomic and molecular scale.
Nanotechnology involves manipulating materials and devices so tiny that nothing could be smaller. It usually signifies sizes from 0.1 nm to 100 nm when discussing nanoparticles.
Note that the dimensions of most atoms lie in the range from 0.1 to 0.2 nm, the width of a DNA molecule is about 2 nm, the characteristic size of a blood cell is about 7500 nm, and a human hair is 80,000 nm.
What’s the Relevance of Nano Particles?
Why do small objects acquire such specific properties at the nanoscale level?
For example, small groups (called clusters) of gold and silver atoms exhibit unique catalytic properties, while larger samples are usually inert. And silver nanoparticles show distinct antibacterial properties and are therefore commonly used in new types of dressings.
As the particle size decreases, the surface-to-volume ratio increases. For this reason, nanoparticles enter into chemical reactions much more quickly.
In addition, quantum physics effects appear below 100 nm. Quantum effects can affect materials’ optical, electrical, or magnetic properties.
Small crystalline specimens of some substances become more robust because they reach a point where they cannot shatter like large crystals do when subjected to force. As a result, metals become similar in some respects to plastics.
For example, small groups (called clusters) of gold and silver atoms exhibit unique catalytic properties, while larger samples are usually inert. And silver nanoparticles show distinct antibacterial properties and are therefore commonly used in new types of dressings.
What Are the Prospects for the Application of Nanotechnology?
In 1986, futurist Eric Dressler envisioned a utopian future in which self-replicating (i.e., self-reproducing) nanorobots do all the work for humans.
These tiny devices can repair the human body from the inside out, making people virtually immortal. Moreover, nanorobots can also move freely in the environment, which makes them indispensable in the fight against pollution in this environment.
It is expected that nanotechnology will provide a significant breakthrough in computer technology, medicine, and military affairs. For example, medical science has developed ways to deliver drugs directly to cancerous tissues in tiny nano bombs. In the future, nanodevices could patrol the arteries, fighting infections and providing disease diagnostics.
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American scientists have successfully used gold-coated nanobullets to find and destroy inoperable cancerous tumors. Scientists have attached nanobullets to antibodies that can contact cancer cells. If you expose the nanobullets to the action of radiation close in frequency to infrared, then their temperature will rise, which contributes to the destruction of cancer-causing tissues.
Researchers at the US Army-funded Institute of Nanotechnology in Cambridge, USA, use nanotechnology to create a fundamentally new type of uniform. Their goal is to create a fabric that can change color, deflect bullets, blast energy, and even glue bones together.
How Are Nanodevices Created?
Currently, there are two main methods for manufacturing nanodevices.
Upwards
The assembly of nanodevices on the principle of “molecule to molecule” is reminiscent of a house or car assembly. Simple nanoparticles, such as titanium dioxide or iron oxide used in cosmetics, can be obtained by chemical synthesis.
It is possible to create nanodevices by dragging and dropping individual atoms using a so-called atomic force microscope (or scanning tunneling microscope), which is sensitive enough to perform such procedures. For the first time, this technique was demonstrated by IBM specialists – using a scanning tunneling microscope, they laid out the abbreviation IBM, arranging 35 xenon atoms accordingly on the surface of a nickel sample.
Top-Down
This technique assumes that we use a macroscopic sample. For example, using etching, we create on its surface the usual components of microelectronic devices with parameters characteristic of the nanoscale.
Does Nanotechnology Pose a Threat to Human Health or the Environment?
There is not so much information about the negative impact of nanoparticles. However, in 2003, one study showed that carbon nanotubes could damage the lungs in mice and rats.
A 2004 study showed that fullerenes could accumulate and cause brain damage in fish. But both studies used large doses of the substance under unusual conditions. According to one of the experts, chemist Kristen Kulinowski (USA), “it would be advisable to limit the impact of these nanoparticles, even though currently there is no information about their threat to human health.”
The Future Is Here
Nanotechnology is already being used to produce hard drives for personal computers, catalytic converters for internal combustion engines, tennis balls with long service life, high-strength and lightweight tennis rackets, tools for cutting metals, and antistatic coatings for sensitive electronic equipment, special coatings for self-cleaning windows.
To sum up, we can’t wait to see the future of nanotechnology. We hope you enjoyed reading, and for any internet-related queries, call on the Windstream number today or Visit Windstreambundledeals.com
