NanotechBy Jon Mainwaring
The mid-1980s discovery of fullerenes – molecules composed entirely of carbon that have spherical or tubular shapes – significantly expanded the variety of forms in which carbon could come, from graphite, diamond and amorphous carbon (soot and charcoal). One of those new carbon forms was a very small, hollow tube (a nanotube), which caused great excitement amongst scientists and engineers about the potential that nanotechnology can offer the world.
The nanotube is the basis of many nanotechnology innovations today, while many other very small carbon forms also play a part in nanotech applications. And while the fields of medicine, electronics and computing have already benefited greatly from nanotech-derived innovations, it seems that the science of the very small also has much to offer those seeking to develop clean technologies.
Generally, nanotechnology involves the manipulation of matter at the molecular level (typically at sizes of less than 100 nanometres in at least one dimension). At these dimensions it is possible to pull off many kinds of neat tricks that are more difficult to achieve using alternative technologies.
