From: Gina Miller (nanogirl@halcyon.com)
Date: Wed Aug 14 2002 - 17:27:27 MDT
The Nanogirl News
August 14, 2002
Report predicts 'wired brains'. A report by the National Science Foundation
and the Department of Commerce in the US says the right investment in IT and
biotech could have startling results. People linking their brains together
to form a global collective intelligence. Humans living well beyond 100
years. Computers uploading aspects of our personalities to a network. These
could all happen this century with the proper investments in technology,
according to a recent report from the National Science Foundation and the
Department of Commerce. Titled Converging Technologies for Improving Human
Performance: Nanotechnology, Biotechnology, Information Technology, and
Cognitive Science, the 405-page report calls for more research into the
intersection of these fields. (ZDNet 8/6/02)
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2120374,00.html
Intel Corp. on Tuesday announced plans to use a technology that stretches
the atoms apart in a silicon wafer, a process that mass-produces the world's
smallest transistors. The Santa Clara, Calif., chip maker's big leap into
the nanotechnology era extends on the "strained silicon" technique first
adopted by competitor IBM Corp but Intel would be the first to use it in
large scale production. By stretching the atoms, Intel said the new
technology would allow electrical current to flow faster, boosting computing
performance and, more importantly, reduce chip-making costs in a tough
market for the semiconductor group. (Zwire 8/13/02)
http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=5039087&BRD=1594&PAG=740&dept_id=28Š“
26964&rfi=6
At Tech, research brings a little light. In the small, small world of
nanotechnology, Georgia Tech researchers are casting a little light --- one
with bright prospects for what could be the next industrial revolution. Tech
scientists said Monday that they had created what may be the world's
smallest light source --- a luminescent glow emitted by a molecule of
silver. Under a microscope, the multicolored glow emitted by a chain of
silver molecules looks for all the world like a string of Christmas tree
lights.
(Atlanta Journal-Constitution 8/13/02)
http://www.accessatlanta.com/ajc/epaper/editions/tuesday/news_d385d996859481
980069.html
IBM, Nion create highest resolution electron microscope. IBM and Nion Co.
researchers have developed innovative technology to peer deep inside
materials and view atoms interacting in different environments at a
resolution never before possible. The new technique significantly extends
the capabilities of the electron microscope -- a scientific instrument that
uses magnetic lenses to focus electrons into very small beams to look at
small, atomic-scale details in thin slices of materials. (IBM.com 8/02)
http://www.ibm.com/news/us/2002/08/08.html
A Nanobridge Too Far? Future nanoscale devices will likely incorporate
structural features that are either partially or completely self-assembled.
One of the most fundamental structures necessary for electronic and other
devices will be a "bridge" that can link structures. Organic molecules with
hydrophilic and hydrophobic portions (amphiphiles) are known to
self-assemble into sphere or tubelike structures depending on experimental
conditions of solvent, pH, and temperature. Usually, either spheres or tubes
form, but not both. (Chemistry.org 8/14/02)
http://chemistry.org/portal/Chemistry?PID=feature_pro.html&id=156b1bc8a57811
d6f1d04fd8fe800100
Nanoparticles Used In Solar Energy Conversion. An enormous source of clean
energy is available to us. We see it almost every day. It's just a matter of
harnessing it. The problem with solar energy is that it has not been
inexpensive enough in the past. David Kelley, professor of chemistry at
Kansas State University, developed a new type of nanoparticle -- a tiny
chemical compound far too small to be seen with the naked eye -- that may
reap big dividends in solar power...Kelley is developing nanoparticles that
are just the right size for solar cells -- they can absorb all visible light
but nothing from the invisible light at the red end of the spectrum, which
would reduce voltage. (Science Daily 8/9/02)
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2002/08/020809071535.htm
Scientists Sweat the Small Stuff. At three VLSI symposia in Honolulu,
Hawaii, researchers debated the best way to update chip materials for the
nanoelectronics age. The guardians of Moore's Law, which states that the
number of transistors on an IC doubles every 18 months, met in Honolulu,
9-15 June, for three consecutive symposia, to ensure that the law remains in
force. The burning question before the Nanoelectronics Workshop, the VLSI
Technology Symposium, and the VLSI Circuits Symposium was this: if an IC's
smallest features are to shrink to 90 nm and below, what properties will be
needed in its transistors and the wires interconnecting them? (IEEE 8/1/02)
http://www.spectrum.ieee.org/WEBONLY/resource/aug02/vlsi.html
Considering Corrosion. The full impact of Thomas M. Devine Jr.'s research
into the nanoscale properties of certain metals may not be fully realized
for millennia. At the same time, his laboratory results could have a
positive impact on the computer industry immediately. (Berkeley College of
Engineering 7/25/02)
http://www.coe.berkeley.edu/labnotes/0802/devine.html
http://www.codesta.com/knowledge/market/nanotech_part_two_markets/
The above, takes a look at a few markets of nanotechnology, outlining
technology in use and how it may aid that market. It is a follow-up to the
following:
http://www.codesta.com/knowledge/market/nanotech_part_one_taxonomy/
The above provides a taxonomy, describing various manufactured states,
fabrication chemistries, and assemblies. This was the first we had placed
up in preparation of the top publication. (Codesta)
Jumping genes can knock out DNA; alter human genome. Results of a new
University of Michigan study suggest that junk DNA - dismissed by many
scientists as mere strings of meaningless genetic code - could have a darker
side. In a paper published in the Aug. 9 issue of Cell, scientists from the
U-M Medical School report that, in cultured human cancer cells, segments of
junk DNA called LINE-1 elements can delete DNA when they jump to a new
location - possibly knocking out genes or creating devastating mutations in
the process. (University of Michigan Health System 8/8/02)
http://www.med.umich.edu/opm/newspage/2002/junkdel.htm
I received this in my e-mail box; "Dear Sir/Madam: American Scientific
Publishers is bringing the Encyclopedia of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology in
10-volumes in March 2003. This is the World's First encyclopedia ever
published in the field of Nanotechnology." The ten volume set (6000 pgs) is
forwarded by Richard E. Smalley, and will be available in print or online.
The editor of the new Encyclopedia, Hari Singh Nalwa is also the chief
editor of the Journal of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology published by
American Scientific Publishers. In 1999 he also was the editor for the
Handbook of Nanostructured Materials and Nanotechnology which was published
in 2000. I am curious to see how this series turns out. There are a
considerable amount of promises in a tremendous amount of nanoscale areas
and a rather large advisory board."
http://www.aspbs.com/enn
Researchers at UCLA Create Better Materials By Emulating Spiders'
Techniques. Researchers at UCLA believe that the secret to creating
stronger, better materials may be solved by studying an unlikely source: the
common spider....Hahn, for example, is taking nanoparticles provided by UCLA
chemistry professor Richard Kaner and putting them into polymers to make
stronger and more functional nanocomposites. Starting with a basic polymer -
similar to the biological material the spider uses to spin its web - Hahn
adds nanoparticles with certain properties to tailor composites for
different functions. "A spider has the impressive ability to change the
properties of the silk it produces for different tasks," Ko said. "There is
a similarity to what we are trying to do."...For example, by adding graphite
nanoplatelets, Hahn can create a material with greater electromagnetic
capabilities, including high conductivity, an important property for
aircraft. (UCLA 8/6/02)
http://www.ucla.edu/Templates/NewsItem2.html
Molecule-size machines the wave of the future, ASU scientists say. The
machines are inside you. Deep within your body, tiny gates are opening and
closing; rotors are spinning; vehicles are chugging along tracks, delivering
supplies or removing waste. And scientists at Arizona State University are
watching. ASU researchers think the body's billions of tiny machines are a
key to a new field that has excited scientists, government officials and
investors around the world. The field is nanotechnology, the study and
manipulation of matter at the atomic and molecular level. (AZCentral.com
8/6/02)
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0806nano06.html
Cool Chips Passes Technical Milestone: On Track for Production. Cool Chips
plc (COLCF) is pleased to announce that its labs are now producing Cool Chip
prototypes which have active tunneling areas of up to 10% of the surface
area of each device. This is a significant technical achievement as it
demonstrates that it is possible to repeatedly fabricate a vacuum gap of
only a few nanometers across a macroscopic surface of several square
centimetres. Tunneling currents in excess of 10A have been observed in
laboratory testing. (Northern Light 8/12/02)
http://library.northernlight.com/FC20020812390000115.html
(Feature on Nanotech Planet) Nanostructures and Semiconductors Combine in
Kopin's LEDs. By applying some of the principles behind genetic engineering
to materials using its patented Wafer Engineering Process, Kopin Corp.
(NASDAQ:KOPN) has created miniature displays for 30 percent of the world's
camcorders and vertical transistors found in about 25 percent of the world's
cell phones. For the company's third product line, the Wafer Engineering
Process was combined with nanotechnology, and the result was a blue
light-emitting diode (LED) smaller than a grain of sand but ultra efficient
when it came to power consumption. 2 pages. (Nanotech-Planet 8/7/02)
http://www.nanotech-planet.com/features/article/0,4028,6571_1442111,00.html
Chicago is looking to seize leadership in the emerging field of
nanotechnology by providing tax subsidies to foster a high-tech corridor on
the Near West Side. The first beneficiary will be a start-up called NanoInk
Inc., which is seeking $1 million in tax-increment financing to move into a
three-story brick building at 1335 W. Randolph St. The 44,000-square-foot
building is on a former industrial strip now dotted with restaurants, near
where MarchFirst Inc. had planned a world headquarters campus. City
officials were hoping MarchFirst's growth would contribute to the area's
revitalization, but the Internet consultancy declared bankruptcy last year
and its real estate is being sold. (Small Times 8/12/02)
http://www.smalltimes.com/document_display.cfm?document_id=4413
Giant Ions Invade BECs. If physics had a sideshow, the latest addition would
surely be this: bacterium-sized ions. According to new theoretical results,
normal ions dropped into a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC)--an ultracold gas
in its quantum mechanical ground state--could seed the formation of
micron-wide charged shells of atoms, or "molecular ions." These objects,
described in the 26 August print issue of PRL, could serve as moveable
microtraps for atoms or aid in testing condensed matter theories. (Physical
Review Focus 8/13/02) http://focus.aps.org/v10/st8.html
Intellectual Property Rights in Nanotechnology. Intellectual property rights
are essential in today's technology-driven age. Building a strategic IP
portfolio is economically important from both an offensive and defensive
standpoint. Applicable areas in Nanotechnology to which intellectual
property rights can apply are presented. Some challenging issues surrounding
the acquisition of IP rights in Nanotechnology are also presented.
(Nanomagazine.com 8/02)
http://www.nanomagazine.com/articles/iprnanotech
Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies receives $75 million DOE go-ahead.
Sandia and Los Alamos national laboratories will jointly receive $75.8
million for the design and construction of buildings to house the practical
yet visionary Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies (CINT). The Office of
Science of the U.S. Department of Energy approved funding in July for two
new buildings: a joint core facility in Albuquerque and a smaller gateway
building in Los Alamos. (Sandia 8/8/02)
http://www.sandia.gov/news-center/news-releases/2002/mat-chem/nanotechcenter
.html
Scientists use alfalfa plants to harvest nanoparticles of gold. Ordinary
alfalfa plants are being used as miniature gold factories that one day could
provide the nanotechnology industry with a continuous harvest of gold
nanoparticles. An international research team from the University of
Texas-El Paso (UTEP) and Mexico advanced the work at the Stanford
Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory (SSRL) - part of the Stanford Linear
Accelerator Center (SLAC) in Menlo Park, Calif. The researchers are using,
as tiny factories, the alfalfa's natural, physiological need to extract
metals from the medium in which they are growing. Of most value here is that
the alfalfa extracts gold from the medium and stores it in the form of
nanoparticles - specks of gold less than a billionth of a meter across.
(EurekAlert 8/14/02)
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2002-08/su-sua081402.php
Gina "Nanogirl" Miller
Nanotechnology Industries
http://www.nanoindustries.com
Personal: http://www.nanogirl.com
nanogirl@halcyon.com
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