Nanoarchitectonics
Encyclopedia
Nanoarchitectonics is a scientific jargon term coined at the National Institute for Materials Science
for one of its leading units, International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics
(MANA). It refers to a technology allowing to arrange nanoscale structural units, which are usually a group of atoms or molecules, in an intended configuration.
Nanoarchitectonics is further classified into two topics, "Nano Creation" and "Nano Organization". "Nano Creation" is synthesis of a new material that does not exist in Nature. For example, by peeling atomic sheets off graphite
slab, a novel nano-material graphene
can be obtained, which has very different properties from graphite.
A typical example of the "Nano Organization" is the development of a nanoelectronics
circuit. Challenging electronic devices are produced experimentally, using previously discovered materials, such as carbon nanotubes, fullerenes, graphene
, single molecules having functional groups, etc. However, their practical use is impossible without a technology ("Nano Organization") to integrate and link these devices into a system.
Nanoarchitectonics is not limited to "Nano Creation" and "Nano Organization", but rather employs those techniques to understand and use the ultimate functions of materials. The important technologies to achieve this goal involve manipulation of single atoms and molecules through physical interactions, chemical reactions, applied fields or self-assembly
.
Examples of those technologies are the following:
National Institute for Materials Science
is an Independent Administrative Institution and one of the largest scientific research centers in Japan.- History :The growth and development of today's scientific research center has passed through several phases in a number of locations:...
for one of its leading units, International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics
International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics
International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics is a special research unit established in 2007 at the National Institute for Materials Science within the Research Center Initiative by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science .- Members :MANA brings together outstanding researchers...
(MANA). It refers to a technology allowing to arrange nanoscale structural units, which are usually a group of atoms or molecules, in an intended configuration.
Nanoarchitectonics is further classified into two topics, "Nano Creation" and "Nano Organization". "Nano Creation" is synthesis of a new material that does not exist in Nature. For example, by peeling atomic sheets off graphite
Graphite
The mineral graphite is one of the allotropes of carbon. It was named by Abraham Gottlob Werner in 1789 from the Ancient Greek γράφω , "to draw/write", for its use in pencils, where it is commonly called lead . Unlike diamond , graphite is an electrical conductor, a semimetal...
slab, a novel nano-material graphene
Graphene
Graphene is an allotrope of carbon, whose structure is one-atom-thick planar sheets of sp2-bonded carbon atoms that are densely packed in a honeycomb crystal lattice. The term graphene was coined as a combination of graphite and the suffix -ene by Hanns-Peter Boehm, who described single-layer...
can be obtained, which has very different properties from graphite.
A typical example of the "Nano Organization" is the development of a nanoelectronics
Nanoelectronics
Nanoelectronics refer to the use of nanotechnology on electronic components, especially transistors. Although the term nanotechnology is generally defined as utilizing technology less than 100 nm in size, nanoelectronics often refer to transistor devices that are so small that inter-atomic...
circuit. Challenging electronic devices are produced experimentally, using previously discovered materials, such as carbon nanotubes, fullerenes, graphene
Graphene
Graphene is an allotrope of carbon, whose structure is one-atom-thick planar sheets of sp2-bonded carbon atoms that are densely packed in a honeycomb crystal lattice. The term graphene was coined as a combination of graphite and the suffix -ene by Hanns-Peter Boehm, who described single-layer...
, single molecules having functional groups, etc. However, their practical use is impossible without a technology ("Nano Organization") to integrate and link these devices into a system.
Nanoarchitectonics is not limited to "Nano Creation" and "Nano Organization", but rather employs those techniques to understand and use the ultimate functions of materials. The important technologies to achieve this goal involve manipulation of single atoms and molecules through physical interactions, chemical reactions, applied fields or self-assembly
Self-assembly
Self-assembly is a term used to describe processes in which a disordered system of pre-existing components forms an organized structure or pattern as a consequence of specific, local interactions among the components themselves, without external direction...
.
Examples of those technologies are the following:
- Physical manipulation of atoms and molecules has already been achieved using, e.g., atomically sharp needles of a scanning tunneling microscopeScanning tunneling microscopeA scanning tunneling microscope is an instrument for imaging surfaces at the atomic level. Its development in 1981 earned its inventors, Gerd Binnig and Heinrich Rohrer , the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1986. For an STM, good resolution is considered to be 0.1 nm lateral resolution and...
or an atomic force microscopeAtomic force microscopeAtomic force microscopy or scanning force microscopy is a very high-resolution type of scanning probe microscopy, with demonstrated resolution on the order of fractions of a nanometer, more than 1000 times better than the optical diffraction limit...
.
- Chemical manipulation can be realized through, e.g., electrochemical reactions induced by localized electric field in a nanoelectronic device or through local polymerizationPolymerizationIn polymer chemistry, polymerization is a process of reacting monomer molecules together in a chemical reaction to form three-dimensional networks or polymer chains...
.
- Field-induced manipulation is a widely explored direction where control over atoms or molecules is achieved using various combinations of electric, magnetic, elastic and other fields. A well known example is manipulation of individual atoms by laserLaserA laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of photons. The term "laser" originated as an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation...
beams ("optical tweezersOptical tweezersOptical tweezers are scientific instruments that use a highly focused laser beam to provide an attractive or repulsive force , depending on the refractive index mismatch to physically hold and move microscopic dielectric objects...
").
- Self-assemblySelf-assemblySelf-assembly is a term used to describe processes in which a disordered system of pre-existing components forms an organized structure or pattern as a consequence of specific, local interactions among the components themselves, without external direction...
usually involves weaker interactions, such as van der Waals forces. Common self-assembly examples are growth of a molecular crystal, e.g., snowSnowSnow is a form of precipitation within the Earth's atmosphere in the form of crystalline water ice, consisting of a multitude of snowflakes that fall from clouds. Since snow is composed of small ice particles, it is a granular material. It has an open and therefore soft structure, unless packed by...
.
External links
- MANA web site
- Official web site of NIMS
- What is Nanoarchitectonics ?
- Scientific jargon