As strange as this question may sound in our time, it will have to be answered. At least for myself. Communicating with scientists and specialists involved in this industry, I came to the conclusion that the question still remains open.

Someone on Wikipedia defined it this way:

Nanotechnology is an interdisciplinary field of fundamental and applied science and technology, dealing with a combination of theoretical justification, practical methods of research, analysis and synthesis, as well as methods for the production and use of products with a given atomic structure through controlled manipulation of individual atoms and molecules.

And this definition was there 2 years ago:

Nanotechnology is a field of applied science and technology that deals with the study of the properties of objects and the development of devices with dimensions on the order of a nanometer (according to the SI system of units, 10 -9 meters).

The popular press uses an even simpler and more understandable definition for the average person:

Nanotechnology is a technology for manipulating matter at the atomic and molecular level.

(I love short definitions :))

Or here is the definition of Professor G. G. Elenin (MSU, M. V. Keldysh Institute of Applied Mathematics RAS):

Nanotechnology is an interdisciplinary field of science in which the laws of physical and chemical processes in spatial regions of nanometer dimensions are studied in order to control individual atoms, molecules, molecular systems in the creation of new molecules, nanostructures, nanodevices and materials with special physical, chemical and biological properties.

Yes, in general, everything is quite clear.. But our (I especially note, domestic) meticulous skeptic will say: “What, every time we dissolve a piece of sugar in a glass of tea, aren’t we manipulating the substance at the molecular level?”

And he will be right. It is necessary to add to the lead concepts related to “control and precision of manipulation.”

The Federal Agency for Science and Innovation in the “Concept for the development of work in the field of nanotechnology in the Russian Federation until 2010” gives the following definition:

“Nanotechnology is a set of methods and techniques that provide the ability to create and modify objects in a controlled manner, including components with sizes less than 100 nm, at least in one dimension, and as a result of this, obtaining fundamentally new qualities that allow their integration into fully functioning large-scale systems; in a broader sense, this term also covers methods of diagnosis, characterology and research of such objects.”

Wow! Powerfully said!

Or, State Secretary of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation Dmitry Livanov defines nanotechnology as:

“a set of scientific, technological and industrial areas that are united into a single culture based on operations with matter at the level of individual molecules and atoms.”

A simple skeptic is satisfied, but a skeptic-specialist will say: “Isn’t it these same nanotechnologies that traditional chemistry or molecular biology and many other areas of science are constantly engaged in, creating new substances in which their properties and structure are determined by nano-sized objects connected in a certain way?”

What to do? We understand what “nanotechnology” is.. we feel it, one might say.. Let’s try to add a couple more terms to the definition.

Occam's razor

Nanotechnology: any technology for creating products whose consumer properties are determined by the need to control and manipulate individual nano-sized objects.

Brief and spare? Let us explain the terms used in the definition:

"Any": This term is intended to reconcile specialists from different scientific and technological fields. On the other hand, this term obliges organizations that control the nanotechnology development budget to take care of financing a wide range of areas. Including, of course, molecular biotechnologies. (Without the need to artificially attach the prefix “nano-” to the name of these directions). I consider it a rather important term for the situation with nanotechnology in our country at the current stage :).

"Consumer properties" (you can, of course, use the traditional term “Consumer value” - as you like): the creation of products using such advanced methods as control and manipulation of matter at the nanoscale should impart some new consumer properties, or affect the price of products, in otherwise it becomes meaningless.

It is also clear that, for example, nanotubes, in which one of the linear dimensions lies in the region of traditional dimensions, also fall under this definition. At the same time, the created products themselves can have any size - from “nano” to traditional.

"Individual": the presence of this term takes the definition away from traditional chemistry and clearly requires the presence of the most advanced scientific, metrological and technological tools capable of providing control over individual, and, if necessary, even specific nano-objects. It is with individual control that we obtain objects that have consumer novelty. It could be argued that, for example, many of the existing technologies for the industrial production of ultrafine materials do not require such control, but this is only at first glance; in fact certified The production of ultradisperse materials necessarily requires control over the size of individual particles.

"Control" , without "Manipulation" extends the definition to the so-called. “previous generation” nanotechnology.
"Control" together with "Manipulation" extends the definition to advanced nanotechnologies.

Thus, if we are able to find a specific nano-sized object, control and, if necessary, change its structure and connections, then this is “nanotechnology”. If we obtain nano-sized objects without the possibility of such control (over specific nano-objects), then this is not nanotechnology or, at best, “previous generation” nanotechnology.

"Nano-sized object": atom, molecule, supramolecular formation.

Overall, the definition attempts to link science and technology to economics. Those. meets the achievement of the main goals of the nanoindustry development program: the creation of technologies based on advanced research and production methods, as well as the commercialization of the achieved achievements.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev is confident that the country has all the conditions for the successful development of nanotechnology.

Nanotechnology is a new direction of science and technology that has been actively developing in recent decades. Nanotechnologies include the creation and use of materials, devices and technical systems, the functioning of which is determined by the nanostructure, that is, its ordered fragments ranging in size from 1 to 100 nanometers.

The prefix "nano", which comes from the Greek language ("nanos" in Greek - gnome), means one billionth part. One nanometer (nm) is one billionth of a meter.

The term “nanotechnology” was coined in 1974 by Norio Taniguchi, a materials scientist at the University of Tokyo, who defined it as “a manufacturing technology that can achieve ultra-high precision and ultra-small dimensions...on the order of 1 nm...” .

In the world literature, nanoscience is clearly distinguished from nanotechnology. The term nanoscale science is also used for nanoscience.

In the Russian language and in the practice of Russian legislation and regulatory documents, the term “nanotechnology” combines “nanoscience”, “nanotechnology”, and sometimes even “nanoindustry” (areas of business and production where nanotechnologies are used).

The most important components of nanotechnology are nanomaterials, that is, materials whose unusual functional properties are determined by the ordered structure of their nanofragments ranging in size from 1 to 100 nm.

- nanoporous structures;
- nanoparticles;
- nanotubes and nanofibers
- nanodispersions (colloids);
- nanostructured surfaces and films;
- nanocrystals and nanoclusters.

Nanosystem technology- functionally complete systems and devices created in whole or in part on the basis of nanomaterials and nanotechnologies, the characteristics of which are radically different from those of systems and devices for similar purposes created using traditional technologies.

Application areas of nanotechnology

It is almost impossible to list all the areas in which this global technology can significantly influence technological progress. We can name just a few of them:

- elements of nanoelectronics and nanophotonics (semiconductor transistors and lasers;
- photo detectors; Solar cells; various sensors);
- ultra-dense information recording devices;
- telecommunications, information and computing technologies; supercomputers;
- video equipment - flat screens, monitors, video projectors;
- molecular electronic devices, including switches and electronic circuits at the molecular level;
- nanolithography and nanoimprinting;
- fuel cells and energy storage devices;
- devices of micro- and nanomechanics, including molecular motors and nanomotors, nanorobots;
- nanochemistry and catalysis, including combustion control, coating, electrochemistry and pharmaceuticals;
- aviation, space and defense applications;
- environmental monitoring devices;
- targeted delivery of drugs and proteins, biopolymers and healing of biological tissues, clinical and medical diagnostics, creation of artificial muscles, bones, implantation of living organs;
- biomechanics; genomics; bioinformatics; bioinstrumentation;
- registration and identification of carcinogenic tissues, pathogens and biologically harmful agents;
- safety in agriculture and food production.

Computers and microelectronics

Nanocomputer— a computing device based on electronic (mechanical, biochemical, quantum) technologies with the size of logic elements on the order of several nanometers. The computer itself, developed on the basis of nanotechnology, also has microscopic dimensions.

DNA computer- a computing system that uses the computing capabilities of DNA molecules. Biomolecular computing is a collective name for various techniques related in one way or another to DNA or RNA. In DNA computing, data is represented not in the form of zeros and ones, but in the form of a molecular structure built on the basis of the DNA helix. The role of software for reading, copying and managing data is performed by special enzymes.

Atomic force microscope- a high-resolution scanning probe microscope based on the interaction of a cantilever needle (probe) with the surface of the sample under study. Unlike a scanning tunneling microscope (STM), it can examine both conducting and non-conducting surfaces even through a layer of liquid, which makes it possible to work with organic molecules (DNA). The spatial resolution of an atomic force microscope depends on the size of the cantilever and the curvature of its tip. The resolution reaches atomic horizontally and significantly exceeds it vertically.

Antenna-oscillator- On February 9, 2005, an antenna-oscillator with dimensions of about 1 micron was obtained in the laboratory of Boston University. This device has 5,000 million atoms and is capable of oscillating at a frequency of 1.49 gigahertz, which allows it to transmit huge amounts of information.

Nanomedicine and pharmaceutical industry

A direction in modern medicine based on the use of the unique properties of nanomaterials and nanoobjects to track, design and modify human biological systems at the nanomolecular level.

DNA nanotechnology- use specific bases of DNA and nucleic acid molecules to create clearly defined structures on their basis.

Industrial synthesis of drug molecules and pharmacological preparations of a clearly defined form (bis‑peptides).

In early 2000, rapid advances in nanoparticle technology gave impetus to the development of a new field of nanotechnology: nanoplasmonics. It turned out to be possible to transmit electromagnetic radiation along a chain of metal nanoparticles using the excitation of plasmon oscillations.

Robotics

Nanorobots- robots created from nanomaterials and comparable in size to a molecule, with the functions of movement, processing and transmission of information, and execution of programs. Nanorobots capable of creating copies of themselves, i.e. self-reproduction are called replicators.

At present, electromechanical nanodevices with limited mobility have already been created, which can be considered prototypes of nanorobots.

Molecular rotors- synthetic nano-sized engines capable of generating torque when sufficient energy is applied to them.

Russia's place among countries developing and producing nanotechnologies

The world leaders in terms of total investment in nanotechnology are the EU countries, Japan and the USA. Recently, Russia, China, Brazil and India have significantly increased investments in this industry. In Russia, the amount of funding under the program “Development of Nanoindustry Infrastructure in the Russian Federation for 2008 - 2010” will amount to 27.7 billion rubles.

The latest (2008) report from the London-based research firm Cientifica, called the Nanotechnology Outlook Report, describes Russian investment verbatim as follows: “Although the EU still ranks first in terms of investment, China and Russia have already overtaken the United States.”

There are areas in nanotechnology where Russian scientists became the first in the world, having obtained results that laid the foundation for the development of new scientific trends.

Among them are the production of ultradisperse nanomaterials, the design of single-electron devices, as well as work in the field of atomic force and scanning probe microscopy. Only at a special exhibition held within the framework of the XII St. Petersburg Economic Forum (2008), 80 specific developments were presented at once.

Russia already produces a number of nanoproducts that are in demand on the market: nanomembranes, nanopowders, nanotubes. However, according to experts, in the commercialization of nanotechnological developments Russia lags behind the United States and other developed countries by ten years.

The material was prepared based on information from open sources

) — This term currently does not have a single, universally accepted definition. By the term “nanotechnology” RUSNANO understands a set of technological methods and techniques used in the study, design and production of materials, devices and systems, including targeted control and management of the structure, chemical composition and interaction of their individual nanoscale elements (with dimensions of the order of 100 nm and less according to at least one of the measurements), which lead to an improvement or the emergence of additional operational and/or consumer characteristics and properties of the resulting products.

Description

The term “nanotechnology” was first used by the professor in his report “On the Basic Concept of Nanotechnology” at an international conference in Tokyo in 1974. Initially, the term “nanotechnology” was used in a narrow sense and meant a set of processes that provide high-precision processing using high-energy electron, photon and ion beams, film deposition and ultra-thin. Currently, the term “nanotechnology” is used in a broad sense, covering and combining technological processes, techniques and systems of machines and mechanisms designed to perform ultra-precise operations on a scale of several nanometers.

Objects of nanotechnology can be both directly low-dimensional objects with dimensions characteristic of the nanorange in at least one dimension (nanofilms), and macroscopic objects (bulk materials, individual elements of devices and systems), the structure of which is controlledly created and modified with resolution at the level of individual nanoelements . Devices or systems are considered to be manufactured using nanotechnology if at least one of their main components is an object of nanotechnology, i.e., there is at least one stage of the technological process, the result of which is an object of nanotechnology.

Authors

• Goldt Ilya Valerievich
• Gusev Alexander Ivanovich

Sources

1. Gusev A.I. Nanomaterials, nanostructures, nanotechnologies. - M.: Fizmatlit, 2007. - 416 p.
2. Gusev A. I., Rempel A. A. Nanocrystalline Materials. - Cambridge: Cambridge International Science Publishing, 2004. - 351 p.

Nanotechnology is a field of fundamental and applied science and technology that deals with a combination of theoretical justification, practical methods of research, analysis and synthesis, as well as methods for the production and use of products with a given atomic structure through controlled manipulation of individual atoms and molecules.

Story

Many sources, primarily English-language ones, associate the first mention of methods that would later be called nanotechnology with Richard Feynman’s famous speech “There’s Plenty of Room at the Bottom,” made by him in 1959 at the California Institute of Technology at the annual meeting of the American Physical Society. Richard Feynman suggested that it was possible to mechanically move single atoms using a manipulator of the appropriate size, at least such a process would not contradict the laws of physics known today.

He suggested doing this manipulator in the following way. It is necessary to build a mechanism that would create a copy of itself, only an order of magnitude smaller. The created smaller mechanism must again create a copy of itself, again an order of magnitude smaller, and so on until the dimensions of the mechanism are commensurate with the dimensions of the order of one atom. In this case, it will be necessary to make changes in the structure of this mechanism, since the gravitational forces acting in the macrocosm will have less and less influence, and the forces of intermolecular interactions and van der Waals forces will increasingly influence the operation of the mechanism.

The last stage - the resulting mechanism will assemble its copy from individual atoms. In principle, the number of such copies is unlimited; it will be possible to create an arbitrary number of such machines in a short time. These machines will be able to assemble macro-things in the same way, by atomic assembly. This will make things much cheaper - such robots (nanorobots) will need to be given only the required number of molecules and energy, and write a program to assemble the necessary items. So far, no one has been able to refute this possibility, but no one has yet managed to create such mechanisms. During the theoretical study of this possibility, hypothetical doomsday scenarios emerged, which assume that nanorobots will absorb all the biomass of the Earth, carrying out their self-reproduction program (the so-called “gray goo” or “gray slurry”).

The first assumptions about the possibility of studying objects at the atomic level can be found in the book “Opticks” by Isaac Newton, published in 1704. In the book, Newton expresses hope that future microscopes will one day be able to explore the “secrets of corpuscles.”

The term “nanotechnology” was first used by Norio Taniguchi in 1974. He used this term to describe the production of products several nanometers in size. In the 1980s, the term was used by Eric K. Drexler in his books Engines of Creation: The Coming Era of Nanotechnology and Nanosystems: Molecular Machinery, Manufacturing, and Computation.

What can nanotechnology do?

Here are just some of the areas in which nanotechnology promises breakthroughs:

Medicine

Nanosensors will provide progress in the early diagnosis of diseases. This will increase your chances of recovery. We can defeat cancer and other diseases. Old cancer drugs destroyed not only diseased cells, but also healthy ones. With the help of nanotechnology, the medicine will be delivered directly to the diseased cell.

DNA nanotechnology– use specific bases of DNA and nucleic acid molecules to create clearly defined structures on their basis. Industrial synthesis of drug molecules and pharmacological preparations of a clearly defined form (bis‑peptides).

At the beginning of 2000, thanks to rapid progress in the technology of manufacturing nano-sized particles, an impetus was given to the development of a new field of nanotechnology - nanoplasmonics. It turned out to be possible to transmit electromagnetic radiation along a chain of metal nanoparticles using the excitation of plasmon oscillations.

Construction

Nanosensors of building structures will monitor their strength and detect any threats to their integrity. Objects built using nanotechnology can last five times longer than modern structures. Homes will adapt to the needs of residents, keeping them cool in the summer and keeping them warm in the winter.

Energy

We will be less dependent on oil and gas. Modern solar panels have an efficiency of about 20%. With the use of nanotechnology, it can grow 2-3 times. Thin nanofilms on the roof and walls can provide energy to the entire house (if, of course, there is enough sun).

Mechanical engineering

All bulky equipment will be replaced by robots - easily controlled devices. They will be able to create any mechanisms at the level of atoms and molecules. For the production of machines, new nanomaterials will be used that can reduce friction, protect parts from damage, and save energy. These are not all the areas in which nanotechnology can (and will!) be used. Scientists believe that the emergence of nanotechnology is the beginning of a new Scientific and Technical Revolution, which will greatly change the world in the 21st century. It is worth noting, however, that nanotechnology does not enter real practice very quickly. Not many devices (mostly electronics) work “nano”. This is partly due to the high price of nanotechnology and the not very high return on nanotechnology products.

Probably, in the near future, with the help of nanotechnology, high-tech, mobile, easily controllable devices will be created that will successfully replace the automated, but difficult to manage and cumbersome equipment of today. For example, over time, computer-controlled biorobots will be able to perform the functions of the current bulky pumping stations.

• DNA computer– a computing system that uses the computing capabilities of DNA molecules. Biomolecular computing is a collective name for various techniques related in one way or another to DNA or RNA. In DNA computing, data is represented not in the form of zeros and ones, but in the form of a molecular structure built on the basis of the DNA helix. The role of software for reading, copying and managing data is performed by special enzymes.
• Atomic force microscope– a high-resolution scanning probe microscope based on the interaction of a cantilever needle (probe) with the surface of the sample under study. Unlike a scanning tunneling microscope (STM), it can examine both conducting and non-conducting surfaces even through a layer of liquid, which makes it possible to work with organic molecules (DNA). The spatial resolution of an atomic force microscope depends on the size of the cantilever and the curvature of its tip. The resolution reaches atomic horizontally and significantly exceeds it vertically.
• Antenna-oscillator– On February 9, 2005, an antenna-oscillator with dimensions of about 1 micron was obtained in the laboratory of Boston University. This device has 5,000 million atoms and is capable of oscillating at a frequency of 1.49 gigahertz, which allows it to transmit huge amounts of information.

10 nanotechnologies with amazing potential

Try to remember some canonical invention. Probably, someone now imagined a wheel, someone an airplane, and someone an iPod. How many of you have thought about the invention of a completely new generation - nanotechnology? This world is little studied, but has incredible potential that can give us truly fantastic things. An amazing thing: the field of nanotechnology did not exist until 1975, even though scientists began working in this area much earlier.

The human naked eye is able to recognize objects up to 0.1 millimeters in size. Today we will talk about ten inventions that are 100,000 times smaller.

Electrically conductive liquid metal

Using electricity, a simple liquid metal alloy of gallium, iridium and tin can be made to form complex shapes or wind circles inside a Petri dish. It can be said with some degree of probability that this is the material from which the famous T-1000 series cyborg, which we could see in Terminator 2, was created.

“The soft alloy behaves like a smart shape, capable of deforming itself when necessary, taking into account the changing surrounding space through which it moves. Just like a cyborg from a popular sci-fi movie could do,” says Jin Li from Tsinghua University, one of the researchers involved in this project.

This metal is biomimetic, meaning it imitates biochemical reactions, although it is not itself a biological substance.

This metal can be controlled by electrical discharges. However, it itself is capable of moving independently, due to the emerging load imbalance, which is created by the difference in pressure between the front and back of each drop of this metal alloy. And although scientists believe this process may be the key to converting chemical energy into mechanical energy, the molecular material is not going to be used to build evil cyborgs anytime soon. The entire “magic” process can only happen in a sodium hydroxide solution or saline solution.

Nanoplasties

Researchers from the University of York are working on developing special patches that will be designed to deliver all the necessary drugs inside the body without any use of needles and syringes. The patches, which are quite normal in size, are glued to your hand and deliver a certain dose of drug nanoparticles (small enough to penetrate the hair follicles) inside your body. Nanoparticles (each less than 20 nanometers in size) will find harmful cells themselves, kill them and be eliminated from the body along with other cells as a result of natural processes.

Scientists note that in the future such nanopatches could be used in the fight against one of the most terrible diseases on Earth - cancer. Unlike chemotherapy, which is often an integral part of treatment in such cases, nanopatches will be able to individually find and destroy cancer cells while leaving healthy cells untouched. The nanopatch project is called NanJect. Its development is being carried out by Atif Syed and Zakaria Hussain, who in 2013, while still students, received the necessary sponsorship as part of a crowdsourcing campaign to raise funds.

Nanofilter for water

When this film is used in combination with a fine stainless steel mesh, oil is repelled, leaving the water in that area pristinely clear.

Interestingly, scientists were inspired to create nanofilm by nature itself. Lotus leaves, also known as water lilies, have the opposite properties of nanofilm: instead of oil, they repel water. This is not the first time that scientists have spied on these amazing plants for their equally amazing properties. This resulted, for example, in the creation of superhydrophobic materials in 2003. As for the nanofilm, researchers are trying to create a material that imitates the surface of water lilies and enrich it with molecules of a special cleaning agent. The coating itself is invisible to the human eye. It will be inexpensive to produce: about $1 per square foot.

Air purifier for submarines

It’s unlikely that anyone thought about what kind of air submarine crews have to breathe, except for the crew members themselves. Meanwhile, cleaning the air from carbon dioxide must be done immediately, since during one voyage the same air has to pass through the light crews of the submarine hundreds of times. To clean the air from carbon dioxide, amines are used, which have a very unpleasant odor. To address this issue, a purification technology called SAMMS (an acronym for Self-Assembled Monolayers on Mesoporous Supports) was created. She proposes the use of special nanoparticles placed inside ceramic granules. The substance has a porous structure, due to which it absorbs excess carbon dioxide. The different types of SAMMS purification interact with different molecules in the air, water and soil, but all of these purification options are incredibly effective. Just one tablespoon of these porous ceramic granules is enough to clean an area equal to one football field.

Nanoconductors

Researchers at Northwestern University (USA) have figured out how to create an electrical conductor at the nanoscale. This conductor is a hard and durable nanoparticle that can be configured to transmit electrical current in various opposite directions. The study shows that each such nanoparticle is capable of emulating the operation of “current rectifiers, switches and diodes.” Each 5-nanometer-thick particle is coated with a positively charged chemical and surrounded by negatively charged atoms. Applying an electrical discharge reconfigures the negatively charged atoms around the nanoparticles.

The potential of the technology, as scientists report, is unprecedented. Based on it, it is possible to create materials “capable of independently changing to suit specific computer computing tasks.” The use of this nanomaterial will actually “reprogram” the electronics of the future. Hardware upgrades will become as easy as software upgrades.

Nanotech charger

When this thing is created, you will no longer need to use any wired chargers. The new nanotechnology works like a sponge, but it doesn't absorb liquid. It sucks kinetic energy from the environment and directs it directly into your smartphone. The technology is based on the use of a piezoelectric material that generates electricity while under mechanical stress. The material is endowed with nanoscopic pores that turn it into a flexible sponge.

The official name of this device is “nanogenerator”. Such nanogenerators could one day become part of every smartphone on the planet, or part of the dashboard of every car, and perhaps part of every clothing pocket - gadgets will be charged directly in it. In addition, the technology has the potential to be used at a larger scale, such as in industrial equipment. At least that's what researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, who created this amazing nanosponge, think.

Artificial retina

The Israeli company Nano Retina is developing an interface that will directly connect to the neurons of the eye and transmit the result of neural modeling to the brain, replacing the retina and restoring vision to people.

An experiment on a blind chicken showed hope for the success of the project. The nanofilm allowed the chicken to see the light. True, the final stage of developing an artificial retina to restore people’s vision is still far away, but progress in this direction cannot but rejoice. Nano Retina is not the only company that is engaged in such developments, but it is their technology that currently seems to be the most promising, effective and adaptive. The last point is the most important, since we are talking about a product that will be integrated into someone's eyes. Similar developments have shown that solid materials are unsuitable for such purposes.

Since the technology is being developed at the nanotechnological level, it eliminates the use of metal and wires, and also avoids the low resolution of the simulated image.

Glowing clothes

Shanghai scientists have developed reflective threads that can be used in clothing production. The basis of each thread is a very thin stainless steel wire, which is coated with special nanoparticles, a layer of electroluminescent polymer, and a protective shell of transparent nanotubes. The result is very light and flexible threads that can glow under the influence of their own electrochemical energy. At the same time, they operate at much lower power compared to conventional LEDs.

The disadvantage of the technology is that the “light reserve” of the threads is still only enough for a few hours. However, the developers of the material optimistically believe that they will be able to increase the “resource” of their product by at least a thousand times. Even if they succeed, the solution to another shortcoming remains in question. It will most likely be impossible to wash clothes based on such nanothreads.

Nanoneedles for the restoration of internal organs

The nanoplasters we talked about above are designed specifically to replace needles. What if the needles themselves were only a few nanometers in size? If so, they could change our understanding of surgery, or at least significantly improve it.

More recently, scientists conducted successful laboratory tests on mice. Using tiny needles, researchers were able to introduce nucleic acids into rodents' bodies, promoting the regeneration of organs and nerve cells and thereby restoring lost performance. When the needles perform their function, they remain in the body and after a few days they completely decompose in it. At the same time, scientists did not find any side effects during operations to restore blood vessels in the back muscles of rodents using these special nanoneedles.

If we take human cases into account, such nanoneedles can be used to deliver necessary drugs into the human body, for example, in organ transplantation. Special substances will prepare the surrounding tissues around the transplanted organ for rapid recovery and eliminate the possibility of rejection.

3D chemical printing

University of Illinois chemist Martin Burke is the Willy Wonka of chemistry. Using a collection of “building material” molecules for a variety of purposes, he can create a huge number of different chemicals endowed with all sorts of “amazing and at the same time natural properties.” For example, one such substance is ratanin, which can only be found in a very rare Peruvian flower.

The potential for synthesizing substances is so enormous that it will make it possible to produce molecules used in medicine, in the creation of LED diodes, solar battery cells and those chemical elements that even the best chemists on the planet took years to synthesize.

The capabilities of the current prototype 3D chemical printer are still limited. He is only capable of creating new drugs. However, Burke hopes that one day he will be able to create a consumer version of his amazing device, which will have much greater capabilities. It is quite possible that in the future such printers will act as a kind of home pharmacists.

Does nanotechnology pose a threat to human health or the environment?

There is not much information about the negative effects of nanoparticles. In 2003, one study showed that carbon nanotubes could damage the lungs of mice and rats. A 2004 study found that fullerenes can accumulate and cause brain damage in fish. But both studies used large amounts of the substance under unusual conditions. According to one of the experts, chemist Kristen Kulinowski (USA), “it would be advisable to limit exposure to these nanoparticles, despite the fact that there is currently no information about their threat to human health.”

Some commentators have also suggested that the widespread use of nanotechnology may lead to social and ethical risks. So, for example, if the use of nanotechnology initiates a new industrial revolution, this will lead to job losses. Moreover, nanotechnology can change the concept of a person, since its use will help prolong life and significantly increase the body's resilience. “No one can deny that the widespread adoption of mobile phones and the Internet has brought about enormous changes in society,” says Kristen Kulinowski. “Who would dare say that nanotechnology will not have a greater impact on society in the coming years?”

Russia's place among countries developing and producing nanotechnologies

The world leaders in terms of total investment in nanotechnology are the EU countries, Japan and the USA. Recently, Russia, China, Brazil and India have significantly increased investments in this industry. In Russia, the amount of funding under the program “Development of nanoindustry infrastructure in the Russian Federation for 2008–2010” will amount to 27.7 billion rubles.

The latest (2008) report from the London-based research firm Cientifica, called the Nanotechnology Outlook Report, describes Russian investment verbatim as follows: “Although the EU still ranks first in terms of investment, China and Russia have already overtaken the United States.”

There are areas in nanotechnology where Russian scientists became the first in the world, having obtained results that laid the foundation for the development of new scientific trends.

Among them are the production of ultradisperse nanomaterials, the design of single-electron devices, as well as work in the field of atomic force and scanning probe microscopy. Only at a special exhibition held within the framework of the XII St. Petersburg Economic Forum (2008), 80 specific developments were presented at once. Russia already produces a number of nanoproducts that are in demand on the market: nanomembranes, nanopowders, nanotubes. However, according to experts, in the commercialization of nanotechnological developments Russia lags behind the United States and other developed countries by ten years.

Nanotechnology in art

A number of works by American artist Natasha Vita-Mor deal with nanotechnology topics.

In modern art, a new direction has emerged: “nanoart” (nanoart) - a type of art associated with the artist’s creation of sculptures (compositions) of micro- and nano-size (10 −6 and 10 −9 m, respectively) under the influence of chemical or physical processes of processing materials , photographing the resulting nano-images using an electron microscope and processing black and white photographs in a graphics editor.

In the well-known work of the Russian writer N. Leskov “Lefty” (1881) there is an interesting fragment: “If,” he says, “there was a better microscope, which magnifies five million, then you would deign,” he says, “to see that on each horseshoe the name of the craftsman is displayed: which Russian master made that horseshoe.” Magnification of 5,000,000 times is provided by modern electron and atomic force microscopes, which are considered the main tools of nanotechnology. Thus, the literary hero Lefty can be considered the first “nanotechnologist” in history.

The ideas presented by Feynman in his 1959 lecture “There's a Lot of Room Down There” about how to create and use nanomanipulators coincide almost textually with the science fiction story “Mikrorukki” by the famous Soviet writer Boris Zhitkov, published in 1931. Some negative consequences of the uncontrolled development of nanotechnology are described in the works of M. Crichton (“The Swarm”), S. Lem (“On-Site Inspection” and “Peace on Earth”), S. Lukyanenko (“Nothing to Divide”).

The main character of the novel “Transman” by Yu. Nikitina is the head of a nanotechnology corporation and the first person to experience the effects of medical nanorobots.

In the science fiction series Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis, some of the most technologically advanced races are two races of “replicators”, which arose as a result of unsuccessful experiments using and describing various applications of nanotechnology. In The Day the Earth Stood Still, starring Keanu Reeves, an alien civilization sentences humanity to death and nearly destroys everything on the planet with the help of self-replicating nanoreplicant bugs that devour everything in their path.

Recently you can often hear the word “nanotechnology”. If you ask any scientist what it is and why nanotechnology is needed, the answer will be short: “Nanotechnology changes the usual properties of matter. They transform the world and make it a better place.”

Scientists claim that nanotechnology will find application in many fields of activity: in industry, in energy, in space exploration, in medicine and much more. For example, tiny nanorobots that can penetrate any cell of the human body will be able to quickly treat certain diseases and perform operations that even the most experienced surgeon cannot do.

Thanks to nanotechnology, “smart homes” will appear. In them, a person will practically not have to deal with boring household chores. “Smart things” and “smart dust” will take on these responsibilities. People will wear clothes that do not get dirty; moreover, they will tell the owner that, for example, it is time to have lunch or take a shower.

Nanotechnology will make it possible to invent computer equipment and mobile phones that can be folded like a handkerchief and carried in a pocket.

In short, nanotechnologists really intend to significantly transform human life.

What is nanotechnology

What is nanotechnology? And how exactly do they allow you to change the properties of things?

The word "nanotechnology" consists of two words - "nano" and "technology".

"Nano" is a Greek word meaning one billionth of something, such as a meter. The size of one atom is slightly less than a nanometer. And a nanometer is as much smaller than a meter as an ordinary pea is smaller than the globe. If a person’s height were one nanometer, then the thickness of a sheet of paper would seem to a person equal to the distance from Moscow to the city of Tula, and this is as much as 170 kilometers!

The word “technology” means creating from available materials what a person needs.

And nanotechnology is the creation of what a person needs from atoms and groups of atoms (they are called nanoparticles) using special devices.

There are two ways to obtain nanoparticles.

The first, simpler, method is “top-down”. The starting material is ground in a variety of ways until the particle becomes nanosized.

The second is the production of nanoparticles by combining individual atoms, “from the bottom up.” This is a more complex method, but this is what scientists see as the future of nanotechnology.

The first way to obtain nanoparticles is to grind the material until the particle becomes nanosized. The second way to obtain nanoparticles is to combine atoms into a nanoparticle in various ways.

Obtaining nanoparticles using this method is reminiscent of working with a construction kit. Only atoms and molecules are used as parts, from which scientists create new nanomaterials and nanodevices.