What is Nanotechnology?
Nanotechnology means analyzing the molecules and materials between 1 nanometer to 100 nanometers and changing that matter. In simple terms nanotechnology is about changing matter at the atomic level or molecular level. This nano scale is measured in nano meters. Why i say less than 100 nanometers here is because nano scale is defined only in that range. As the range increases, its measuring scale changes.
Just as we cannot see atoms, we cannot see a virus particle with our eyes. Everything in this universe is made up of atoms. This earth, the food we eat, birds and animals are all made of atoms. All we see are clusters of a few billion atoms. Before we can change certain atomic groups to our liking, we must first observe and study them. Few tools are available to study the nanometer size. They are Atomic Force Microscope, Scanning Tunneling Microscope, Scanning Probe Microscope etc.
fig. Nanotechnology
How it is started ?
In 1959, a scientist named Laureate Richard Feynman first talked about nanotechnology. He thought that miracles could happen if materials could be solidified at the levels of atoms and molecules. He worked hard for ten years for nanotechnology. Later many scientists made their own efforts. It is very difficult to bring technology completely single-handedly.
Carbon Nanotubes:
Now we may doubt that actually less than 100 nanometers is a smaller range than some virus particles. What do they do with these tiny particles? Scientists make carbon nanotubes through carbon atoms. This carbon nano tube is only 49 meters in diameter. These carbon nanotubes are used in antennas, electric motors, batteries and other electronic devices. Carbon nanotubes play an important role in everything we do to listen to the radio, cell phone towers to send and receive signals, and radio telescopes to receive radio frequencies.
Another example is a transistor. The size of the transistor is about 29 nanometers. A micro chip has 500 to 50 crore transistors. This microchip is about the size of a grain of rice. These microchips are in the computers, phones, TVs and other devices we use today. That means we can understand the role of those small transistors behind the technology we are using now.
Atoms of carbon, hydrogen, silicon, silver, gold and other elements form the nanostructure and make up the nano material. For example, carbon fiber, carbon nanotube, nano coating and other five types of materials are made only by carbon materials. A transistor is made from silicon elements.
These nanomaterials are stronger and more reactive than traditional materials. Because the way they are arranged uses less energy to produce them. The more advanced this nanotechnology is, the smaller the amount of materials we need and the greater the efficiency. Once the world's first computer was the size of a large room. Its size is about 50 tons. Transistors are inches in size.
As technology advances, the size of their components has decreased. And with the development of nano technology, some of the parts have gone into the size of nanometers. A computer that used to be the size of a large room is now the size of a box. Later it developed until we hold it in our hands as a laptop. Moreover, the efficiency of the computer we use now is much higher than the efficiency of the first computer.
Nanotechnology is the next industrial revolution, and it will change the world more than the Internet has" - K. Eric Drexler
What wonders can nanotechnology do?
In a few years, nanotechnology will be 100 times more advanced than current technology. The technologies we see on TV in fiction and the things imaging ourselfs are made possible by nanotechnology. Let's see it now.
1.Nano madicine:
In the future, nano medicine will become a revolution. Scientists are making sensors and robots that are nanometers in size. Sensors detect where the problem is in our body. Our organs are constantly monitored to know how they are functioning.
We don't have proper medicines for some diseases like HIV and cancer. If this nano medicine is developed, the sufferings of these diseases will also be reduced. Nano robots can detect any disease cells and destroy them.
2.Size reduced:
Once upon a time, a hard drive the size of a refrigerator could store only 5 MB. Now our hand-sized hard drive can store up to 10 terabytes. Today's hard drive is ten million times more advanced than the world's first hard drive . Here the size is greatly reduced and the capacity is greatly increased.
3.Cost reduced:
Another major advantage of nano technology is that the cost of materials made with nano technology is drastically reduced. In 1980 the cost of a computer was up to 5 lakhs. Now computers with more efficiency are coming for 30 thousand. In 1980, only 10 MB hard drive cost was up to 2 lakhs but now 1 terabyte hard drive is available for 2 thousand. Because of nano technology understand how much change has come in their data storage.
4.Increased fuel production efficiency:
The fuel and diesel that we usually use in vehicles are made of hydrogen and carbon molecules. But scientists add certain ingredients to fuels that separate hydrocarbon elements as well as other atoms. Hence the fuel is 100% carbon and hydrogen. That increases the engine mileage. Also, fuel is made from raw materials found in nature through nano technology.
For example coal is abundant on our earth. Coal contains carbon, hydrogen, and nitrogen. But if fuel is made from coal using nano technology, more fuel can be obtained at a lower cost. It is also more efficient.
5.Nanotechnology can make fresh water from any waste water:
Many countries in the world are facing shortage of drinking water. Also in some countries basic purified from pond and river water is used as drinking water. But nanotechnology can make fresh water from any waste water. Carbon nano tubes and aluminum fibers are useful for this. These nano members filter the water from oil, virus, bacteria and other contaminants present in the water. Pure water is separated through it.
6.Nano technology is also useful in agriculture:
Kills disease-causing pathogens that destroy plants. Also nutrients help to grow. To will destroys harmful cells. In this way, nanotechnology use in agriculture.
7.Nanotechnology makes the sensor system very sophisticated:
Only the smart phones we use have 14 sensors. Phones, computers, vehicles and even street poles are going to have sensors in more in the near future. Already in some countries face detector sensors are installed in street lights to know who is doing what activities on the street.
8.Cancer Madicine:
Some types of tea leaves have anti-cancer properties. The cancer-fighting molecules in these tea leaves can be isolated and made into medicine. 80% of cancers are curable, although not completely.
What is Graphene?
Scientists have recently produced a material called graphene through nanotechnology. It is a single sheet of carbon atoms. But this single graphene material can do many wonders. It is 100 times stronger and six times lighter than steel.
fig. Graphene
What are the uses of this Graphene?
- Batteries made of this graphene material store more energy.
- Phones made with this are strong and stretchy.
- Graphene is also useful for blood delivery in our body.
- Transistors can also be made from graphene. Transistors made of this are chemically and voltage controlled.
- Graphene can also be used as an electrical conductor. There are many more benefits like this.
Nanotechnology can make solar cells, improve air quality, make graphene into diamonds, improve our eyesight with some nano materials, repair any scratched or broken material by itself, control the weather, make nano weapons. The role of nano technology is essential in all fields like manufacturing.
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