BASICS

 

BASIC OF NANOTECHNOLOGY

NANOSCALE EXPERIMENTS

APPLICATION EXPERIMENTS

NANOTECHNOLOGY FOR KIDS

EDUCATIONAL LINKS

NANOTECHNOLOGY MOVIES

           In this category, the pages explain what nanotechnology is and provide a way to begin learning about nanotechnology.
 
Cocunano - Structure made with a scanning tunneling microscope at the NIST Nanoscale Physics Facility. The larger blue peaks are pairs of cobalt atoms, while the two smaller peaks are single cobalt atoms. The swirls on the copper surface illustrate how the cobalt and copper electrons interact with each other. bose3- Bose Einstein Condensates or BECs are a new kind of matter in which a collection of individual atoms melds into a -superatom- that behaves as a single entity. The graphics above show successive snap shots in time in which that atoms condensed from less dense red, yellow and green areas into very dense blue to white areas. penny - Device used in the NIST optical clock to trap a single mercury ion. Read more on optical timekeeping. Similar electromagnetic ion traps are used in NIST experiments with quantum computing. Read more on quantum computing. comeil - A colorized lattice of tornado-like vortices within a spinning Bose Enstein condensate of rubidium atoms. Formed in an ultrahigh vacuum at temperatures of only a few hundred billionths of degree above absolute zero, such condensates are a new tool for studying quantum mechanics.
Cocunano

Bose3

Penny

Comeil
Quantum daisy - Twelve cobalt atoms arranged in a circle on a surface of copper produce a daisy-like pattern from the interference of electron wave. This image was made with a one-of-a-kind instrument that, acting autonomously, picks up and places individual atoms anywhere on a surface. NIST scientists are studying the quantum properties of different atom arrangements to help improve the design and fabrication of nanoscale devices. Magnesium oxide dice - NIST scientists are developing new three-dimensional chemical imaging methods. Using a scanning transmission electron microscope, a tilting stage, and sensitive detectors, NIST researchers can construct images that reveal both the chemical components and the complex shapes of crystal structures. This image shows cubes of magnesium oxide. Nanoscale particles of gold were deposited on the crystal faces to help define the surface topography. Rainbow Film - A rainbow of colors indicates the thickness of a clear, organic film used to mount microscopic particles. The deep blue and brown on the left of this optical micrograph show that the film is less than a micrometer thick, the right thickness for embedding single particles for microstructural analysis. In an AML ultraclean room, NIST chemists mount and analyze individual particles for forensic, advanced materials, and other researchers. Silicon Staircase - Steps of silicon serve as a natural ruler for measuring vertical dimensions. This silicon -target- has step heights ranging from tens to hundreds of nanometers leading down to a flat, single atomic layer measuring only 0.3 nanometer. The microscope used to make this image sits on an isolated concrete slab equipped with air springs to cancel out even minute vibrations that could ruin the nanoscale measurements.
Quantum daisy
Magnesium oxide dice
Rainbow Film
Silicon Staircase

Above images Courtesy National Institute of Standards and Technology