X-Message-Number: 19303 From: "Gina Miller" <> Subject: The Nanogirl News~ Date: Tue, 18 Jun 2002 00:58:18 -0700 The Nanogirl News June 18, 2002 IBM's 'Millipede' Project Demonstrates Trillion-Bit Data Storage Density. June 11, 2002 -- Using an innovative nanotechnology, IBM scientists have demonstrated a data storage density of a trillion bits per square inch -- 20 times higher than the densest magnetic storage available today. IBM achieved this remarkable density -- enough to store 25 million printed textbook pages on a surface the size of a postage stamp -- in a research project code-named "Millipede". (IBM 6/11/02) http://www.research.ibm.com/resources/news/20020611_millipede.shtml Extreme ultraviolet lithography accelerates the future. The era of nanoscale computer chips is almost upon us. Recent advances employ the "at-wavelength" extreme-ultraviolet interferometer at the Advanced Light Source, arguably the most accurate wavefront measuring device in the world, now converted to print test wafers from advanced optics. (Berkeley Lab science beat 6/4/02) http://www.lbl.gov/Science-Articles/Archive/ALS-EUVL-Smith.html U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham visited Brookhaven National Laboratory on Friday to announce that BNL's proposed nanocenter will officially move ahead. In remarks to BNL employees after touring the labs on Long Island in New York, Abraham also signaled the Energy Department's growing commitment to developing nanotechnologies that serve U.S. national interests, from bioterror detection to fuel cells that could help reduce dependence on foreign oil. (Small Times 6/17/02) http://www.smalltimes.com/document_display.cfm?document_id=3982 Cornell scientists create single-atom transistor by implanting molecule between wires, enabling 'virtual dance of electrons'. A long-sought goal of scientists has been to shrink the transistor, the basic building block of electronic circuits, to smaller and smaller size scales. Scientists at Cornell University have now reached the smallest possible limit: a transistor in which electrons flow through a single atom. The Cornell researchers have created a single-atom transistor by implanting a "designer" molecule between two gold electrodes, or wires, to create a circuit. When voltage was applied to the transistor, electrons flowed through a single cobalt atom within the molecule. (Cornell news 6/12/02) http://www.news.cornell.edu/releases/June02/McEuen.transistor.deb.html In a similar way, Hongkun Park and colleagues at Harvard University and the University of California at Berkeley trapped divanadium molecules between gold electrodes - also 1 nm apart - and used aluminium oxide to isolate the gap region from their silicon gate electrode (W Liang et al 2002 Nature 417 725). Hongkun Park's group http://www.people.fas.harvard.edu/~hpark/ Nanowires composed of two different semiconductors that could function as transistors, light-emitting diodes, biochemical sensors, thermoelectric heat pumps -- or all of the above on the same length of wire -- may hasten the arrival of silicon chips packed with billions of electronic devices. A critical step towards realizing that future has been taken by Berkeley Lab researchers who have developed nanowires composed of two different semiconductors -- silicon and silicon germanium alloy -- in discrete alternating segments, like the different flavored stripes of a candy cane. These striped or "superlatticed" nanowires can function as transistors, LEDs (light-emitting diodes) and other optoelectronic devices, biochemical sensors, heat-pumping thermoelectric devices, or all of the above, along the same length of wire.(Berkeley Lab science beat 6/4/02) http://www.lbl.gov/Science-Articles/Archive/MSD-nanowires-Yang.html Endohedral Fullerenes. They aren't easy to prepare or study, but researchers are getting closer to understanding and exploiting the unique properties of these fascinating molecules.At the 201st meeting of the Electrochemical Society (ECS), held last month in Philadelphia, attendees were treated to a smorgasbord of new findings about endohedral fullerenes that is likely to feed their fascination. Speakers at the conference reported intriguing preliminary results on upping the synthetic yield of "endohedrals," encapsulating a carbene inside a carbon cage, testing a new metallofullerene derivative with potential for medical imaging, and measuring for the first time the nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrum of a xenon atom trapped inside a buckyball, among other advances. (C&E 6/17/02) http://pubs.acs.org/cen/coverstory/8024/8024fullerenes.html Magnetic NOT Gate A nanometre-scale logic gate that works at room temperature and is made entirely from metal has been developed by UK physicists. According to Russell Cowburn's team at the University of Durham, the ferromagnetic NOT gate is "a completely new class of device" that could be made even smaller. The researchers have also created a 13-bit shift register by linking the devices together, and believe it should be possible to make a full set of logic gates using their technique (D Allwood et al 2002 Science 296 2003). (Nanotechweb 06/13/2002) http://nanotechweb.org/articles/news/1/6/8/1 Writing Nanopatterns With DNA Inks. Using an atomic force microscope tip as a pen and different single-stranded DNA as inks, scientists have demonstrated a technique that could lead to the ultimate high-density gene chip because it takes gene chips to the limit of miniaturization - down to the scale of the DNA molecules themselves. This development, which uses the same tool to write patterns and read the results on the nanometer scale, could have an enormous impact on genomics and proteomics research. (Northwestern University, via EurekAlert 06/06/2002) http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2002-06/nu-wnw060302.php New Robotic Microscope Helps Scientists Track Cells Over Time. A new invention-a robotic microscope-is opening the way for scientists to track changes in cells over time as genes are expressed and the resulting proteins go into action. Tracking this dynamic process is extremely difficult using conventional techniques. Part of the problem has been the cells' need for the warmth and atmosphere of an incubator such that cells can only be taken out and viewed for brief periods of time. (Science Daily 6/10/02) http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2002/06/020610074158.htm Researchers demo self-assembling nanowires. Researchers at Aarhus University here have demonstrated a nanometer-scale fabrication technique that self-assembles tiny wires atop substrates, with an eye toward interconnecting molecular electronic circuits in the future. The team demonstrated how a template molecule could form wires measuring only 2 atoms wide atop a copper substrate, said Flemming Besenbacher, director of the university's Nanoscience Center, who conducted the work with researchers Federico Rosei and Michael Schunackm. "Our self-fabrication process makes use of the shape of a template molecule at the nanoscale to enable interconnecting molecules with atomic-scale precision," said Besenbacher. (EE Times 6/5/02) http://www.eet.com/at/news/OEG20020604S0011 ND3 - The first molecule with three deuterium atoms discovered in space. To their great surprise, astronomers of the Max-Planck-Institute for Radio Astronomy in Bonn and the California Institute of Technology in Los Angeles have discovered a new molecule in space: ND3. This is a special form of ammonia, NH3, where all three hydrogen atoms are replaced by the heavier and rare isotope deuterium (similar as in heavy water - D2O). Such molecules which contain deuterium occur mostly in very cold clouds of gas and dust in our Milky Way. In such clouds, molecules with one or two deuterium atoms had been found before. The new molecule, however, is the first one with three deuterium atoms. The results are published in a letter to Astronomy & Astrophysics (Vol 388(3), L53: June IV, 2002). http://www.mpg.de/news02/news0214.htm Researchers run molecular machines on light. In a breakthrough suggesting that a new field of nanotechnology based on optical fields might emerge, researchers here have demonstrated the feasibility of operating molecular machines with light. The researchers were able to perform complete mechanical cycles, demonstrating for the first time that optomechanical energy conversion is possible. (EE Times 5/6/02) http://www.eet.com/at/news/OEG20020606S0033 Beam Me Up! Australian Scientists Teleport a Beam of Light. In a world breakthrough out of the realms of Star Trek, scientists in Australia have successfully teleported a laser beam of light from one spot to another in a split second but warn: don't sell the car yet. A team of physicists at the Australian National University (ANU) announced today they had successfully disembodied a laser beam in one location and rebuilt it in a different spot about one meter away in the blink of an eye. (ABC news 6/17/02) http://abcnews.go.com/sections/scitech/DailyNews/teleport020617.html 'High-tech' cosmetics coming into vogue. Cosmetic products that utilize the latest developments in science and technology, including nanotechnology, have been attracting much attention from consumers. But how far can science and technology go in realizing women's hope of staying young and beautiful forever? Cosmetic products function both to cover imperfections and improve the condition of the skin to make women look more beautiful. (Daily Yomiuri 6/02) http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/newse/20020615woc4.htm A new chemical procedure can be used to prepare neatly aligned nanotubes from a wide range of polymers, polymer blends, and multicomponent solutions, according to researchers in Germany. The work provides a general technique for preparing functionalized structures for applications in nanotechnology. By wetting ordered porous templates with droplets of polymer melts or polymer solutions, Martin Steinhart and Joachim H. Wendorff of Philipps University in Marburg, Ralf B. Wehrspohn and Ulrich M. G sele of Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics in Halle, and coworkers coat template surfaces with polymer films that retain the shape of the template's pore array after the template is removed by chemical means [Science, 296, 1997 (2002)]. (C & E 6/17/02) http://pubs.acs.org/cen/topstory/8024/8024notw3.html Nanotechnology's First Fruits. Products nearing market promise to lead the budding industry from hype to reality. When most people think about nanotechnology, they usually conjure images of microscopically tiny contraptions such as the invisibly small submarine that was injected into a character's bloodstream in the classic 1966 sci-fi movie "Fantastic Voyage." Nanovehicles and the revolution they would create in science, medicine, military affairs, and manufacturing are still on the distant horizon. (SF GATE 6/6/02) http://www.sfgate.com/technology/beat/ For Intel, Hype Without Silicon is Just Hype. While some companies are just now embracing and hyping nanotech as a "new" technology, Intel has been working in the field and shipping products with nano-sized components for years. "When people talk just about size, we've been there for a long time and we're shipping in high volume," Gerald Marcyk, director of Intel's Components Research Group, told NanotechPlanet. (Silliconvalley internet.com 6/17/02) http://siliconvalley.internet.com/news/article.php/1367141 Infineon Technologies achieves breakthrough in carbon nanotube technology. First microelectronics compatible growth of nanotubes at predefined sites on silicon wafers. Scientists from Infineon Technologies (FSE/NYSE: IFX) in Munich have made a crucial breakthrough in the promising field of carbon nanotube (CNT) research. A tried-and-tested microelectronics process was modified so that CNTs could be grown at predefined locations on 6" wafers. The properties of CNTs, which are very interesting for many applications and include current densities up to 1010 amps per square centimeter and thermal conductivities almost twice that of diamond, can now be used for the first time in wafer-compatible processes for IC development. (Infineon Technologies news 6/6/02) http://www.infineon.com/news/press/206_101e.htm Extremely small is beautiful. Last week the management of Magnet, the generic technology research and development program of the chief scientist at the Industry and Trade Ministry, selected nanotechnology as its main field and as the leading project for 2002. Due to budgetary constraints the management, headed by outgoing Chief Scientist Carmel Vernia and the program's director, Ilan Peled, was forced to choose one project, and favored the nanotechnology consortium over the concentrations of competing institutions in the communications field. (Ha'aretz 6/18/02) http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=177390&contrassID =2&subContrassID=2&sbSubContrassID=0&listSrc=Y Oxonica Raises $6 Million on Nanotech Applications. Oxonica, an Oxford-based nanoparticle company has received a first-round of institutional investment worth 4 million pounds ($6 million) from VCF Partners, BASF Venture Capital, NextGen Partners, Enabling Technologies, Northern Venture Managers and Generics Asset Management of the Generics Group. The company was previously seed funded by Seighford Investment. (Tornado Insider 6/10/02) http://www.tornado-insider.com/news/Article.asp?id=12810 A few small thoughts on nanotechnology. Small is big and it's getting bigger.Nanotechnology, the branch of engineering that promises to turn molecules into machines--is capturing America's imagination. Businesses predict demand, investors smell profits, cities see tax revenue and jobs. Nano buffs forecast that by 2015 this mighty-mite technology will grow into a trillion-dollar industry. That's trillion, with a T. With a Q & A section. (The Business Review 6/4/02) http://www.bizjournals.com/albany/stories/2002/06/17/editorial3.html Tiny Weapons With Giant Potential. Dr.Uri Sagman, president of C Sixty a Toronto-based nanotechnology company that is developing carbon molecules called fullerenes as a drug-delivery system for cancer, AIDS and other diseases. Soon, he hopes, it will be possible to load these minuscule, spherical structures-each containing 60 carbon atoms arranged like the hexagonal pattern on a soccer ball-with drugs or radioactive atoms and then fire them like guided missiles at diseased cells. "Think of a smart bomb," says Sagman. "Conventional chemotherapy is like carpet-bombing. You drop it from 60,000 feet and hope for the best. This goes precisely to the target." (MSNBC 6/24/02 issue) http://www.msnbc.com/news/767743.asp Sorry this news update took so long, as I was distracted by the Nanotechnology Industries re-design, don't forget to stop by! http://www.nanoindustries.com Gina "Nanogirl" Miller "Nanotechnology: Solutions for the future." "I want to know God's thoughts...the rest are details." Einstein Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=19303