[Audio] Introductory Seminars on What is Nanotechnology?

Huge problems of energy and sustainability confront the science/engineering community, mankind, and our planet. The energy problem comes in many dimensions, including supply, demand, conservation, transportation, and storage. This overview will stress the nature of these problems, and offer a few areas where theoretical chemistry can make substantial contributions to solving them. Also discussed are excitons in solar cells and on advanced batteries.

DragonflyTV is a PBS science series for children, broadcast nationwide and on the internet. DragonflyTV models authentic science inquiry through its unique approach: In each episode, ordinary kids conduct their own inquiry-based investigations, modeling the inquiry process and communicating the infectious enthusiasm that comes with making their own discoveries.

There is an overwhelming need on the part of the research community to explain our efforts in nanoscale science and engineering to the general public. To do so effectively there is also a need to catalogue the public's understanding of nanotechnology especially with respect to their ability to comprehend matters of size and scale. As a result of extensive one-on-one surveys a clear picture of the public's understanding has been obtained and it shows little knowledge of the subject especially in the area of comprehending scale over several orders of magnitude. The foundation for moving forward is to take advantage of their recollection of basic chemistry and atomic models which can be used as a reference point for nanotechnology. More complex molecular models confuse the viewer because they lack a simple reference point back to the viewer's previous experience. Four simple concepts about nanotechnology have been developed which provide the general public with a foundation on which to build a more applications oriented knowledge. A large touring museum exhibit (Too Small to See), has been built which has successfully faced the challenges of bringing nanoscale phenomena to the human-scale. This exhibit debuted at Epcot, Walt Disney World Resort in 2006-7 where over 700,000 people interacted with it. In addition a web-based magazine (Nanooze) and more recently a print version of this magazine have all be launched to help inform the general public about nanotechnology.

Professor Paul Alivisatos introduces the Helios Project for the 2007 'Science at the Theater' series at Berkeley Repertory Theater in Berkeley, California. He discusses how Helios Project researchers use nanotechnology in the efficient capture of sunlight, and its conversion to electricity to drive economical fuel production processes. The Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory's Helios Project concentrates on renewable fuels such as biofuels, solar technologies such as photovoltaic cells, and the conversion of electricity into chemical storage.

The field of nano science and nano-technology covers broad areas of expertise. Classical fields of Physics, Chemistry, Material Science, Electrical/Mechanical/Chemical Engineering all are involved in the "new" field. Nano research and development is therefore multidisciplinary. This presentation is the personal perspective of an electrical engineer who works in nanoelectronics, beginning with an introductory discussion of nanoelectronics and the formations of a multidisciplinary nano research team. An explanation is given for different length-scales as well as the trend of device size-shrinking. Two resulting multidisciplinary large-scale modeling and simulation efforts are presented: 1) the creation of the first nanoelectronic CAD tool NEMO at Texas Instruments, and 2) the creation and operation of the community simulation web site nanoHUB.org by the Network for Computational Nanotechnology (NCN).

While the Greek root nano just means dwarf, the nanoscale has become a giant focus of contemporary science and technology. We will examine the fundamental issues underlying the excitement involved in nanoscale research - what, why and how. Specific topics include assembly, properties,...

Quantum Dots are man-made artificial atoms that confine electrons to a small space. As such, they have atomic-like behavior and enable the study of quantum mechanical effects on a length scale that is around 100 times larger than the pure atomic scale. Quantum dots offer application...

What is a quantum dot? What is a nanowire? What is a nanotube? Why are these interesting and what are their potential applications? How are they made? This presentation is intended to begin to answer these questions while introducing some fundamental concepts such as wave-particle duality, quantum confinement, the electronic structure of solids, and the relationship between size and properties in nanomaterials.

This seminar will provide an introductory overview for non-experts of the emerging field of nanometer scale science and technology. The following topics will be emphasized: (1) historical background and motivation for the study of nanometer scale phenomena; (2) strategies for controlling the structure of matter with nanometer scale precision; (3) size-dependent properties (e.g., electrical, optical, and magnetic) that emerge at the nanometer scale; and (4) real-world applications that utilize nanometer scale devices.