Transcript Nanotechnology

Nanotechnology
By: Adam Morte
What is Nanotechnology?
► Nanotechnology
is broadly defined as
controlling matter on a scale of smaller than
one micrometer. It also can be defined as
an extension of existing sciences along a
nanoscale.
► Human hair is 80,000 nm wide.
► One nanometer (nm) is one billionth
(10^-9) of a meter
Approaches to Nanotechnology
► Two
main approaches: “bottom-up” & “topdown”.
 Bottom-up occurs when devices are built from
smaller components into more complex
assemblies molecule by molecule.
 Top-down occurs when smaller nano-objects are
constructed from larger entities that direct their
assembly & built piece by piece in stages, much
like the way manufactured items are
constructed.
Advantages of Nanotechnology
► When
nanotechnology is applied the ratio of
surface area to volume increases & opens
possibilities
 Has ability to improve materials strength and
intelligence while enabling products to be smaller, light
weight, more flexible, more efficient, and run cleaner.
► Materials
when reduced to a nano-size can show
very different properties than on a macro scale.
 Substances such as aluminum and plastic become
combustible & solid gold becomes a liquid.
 Plastic can conduct electricity very well on nano scale.
Impacts on Computer Speed
► Improve
capabilities of current
computer chips
► Allows
speeds that we have
never dreamed of
► In
1995 there was a challenge
to make the worlds first
nanometer supercomputer
that would run billions of
times faster than our current
computers
 Deadline is November of 2011
Impacts on Computer Memory
► Continue
to shrink memory components
NVRAM
► Nano-engineered
crystals could lead to the
realization of a 50 year old dream of
creating Nonvolatile Random Access
Memory (NVRAM)
 Laptop computers would no longer need backup batteries, allowing them to be smaller and
lighter.
Far Future
► Possibilities
are endless
► Nanotechnology
is said to potentially allow
for entirely new computation methods with
algorithms based on quantum principles.
 Would greatly increase the speed and memory
capacity of computer systems.
Risks
► Little
is known about nanotechnology.
► The extent of the technologies capabilities
are still unknown.
► World
take over
► Unpredictable outcomes
Questions?