Archive for Nanotech
October 17, 2008 at 11:57 am · Filed under Miniaturization, Nanotech, Printing, Osaka University
An Osaka University research team has demonstrated an “atomic pen” that can inscribe nano-sized text on metal by manipulating individual atoms on the surface.
According to the researchers, whose results appear in the October 17 edition of Science magazine, the atomic pen is built on a previous discovery that silicon atoms at the tip of an atomic force microscope probe will interchange with the tin atoms in the surface of a semiconductor sample when in close proximity. Using this atom-interchange phenomenon, the researchers were able to arrange individual silicon atoms one by one on a semiconductor surface to spell out the letters “Si.” The writing process, which took about an hour and a half to complete, was conducted at room temperature.
The completed text measures 2 x 2 nanometers, which is roughly 40,000 times smaller than the width of the average human hair.
“It’s not possible to write any smaller […]
Original post by Edo
August 13, 2008 at 1:42 pm · Filed under Tokyo University, Robot, Material, electronics, Nanotech, Wearable
In a technological advance that opens up new possibilities in the fields of robotics and wearable computing, researchers at the University of Tokyo have developed a stretchable, rubbery material that conducts electricity and can be incorporated into electronic devices.
The researchers — led by assistant professor Takao Someya of the University of Tokyo — were able to create elastic electronic circuits that could be stretched up to 1.7 times their original size without affecting performance, thanks to conductive wires made from a new carbon nanotube-polymer composite they developed.
In recent years, scientists have made advances in blending carbon nanotubes (good conductors of electricity) with polymers to make flexible conductive materials, but success has been limited because nanotubes tend to cluster together, causing the composite to harden when too many nanotubes are added. The University of Tokyo researchers were able to overcome this hurdle by mixing the nanotubes with […]
Original post by Edo
May 29, 2008 at 9:56 am · Filed under Tokyo University, Simulacra, Miniaturization, Nanotech
It won’t fill you up, but it is a feast for the eyes. This so-called “world’s smallest bowl of ramen” — a 1-micron (1/1000-mm, or 1/100th the width of a human hair) wide bowl containing dozens of 2-micron (1/500-mm) long x 0.02-micron (1/50,000-mm) thick noodles — was created by University of Tokyo professor Masayuki Nakao as part of an effort to develop new carbon nanotube-based microcircuit fabrication technology. Nakao used a metal particle beam to carve the bowl from silicon, and he mixed up a soup of ethanol and catalyst inside the bowl to form the carbon nanotube “noodles.” According to Nakao, it was a major challenge to keep it from overflowing. No word yet on how the microscopic meal tastes.
[Source: Yomiuri]
Original post by Edo
January 7, 2008 at 6:12 pm · Filed under Miniaturization, RIKEN, Nanotech
In a development that brings superdense memory devices and molecule-sized machines a step closer to reality, scientists at Japan’s Institute of Physical and Chemical Research (RIKEN) have succeeded in creating 1-nanometer-thick electric wires with a layer of insulation. According to a January 2 RIKEN press release, the researchers grew the insulated nanowire crystals through a process involving a mixture of conductive and non-conductive organic molecules that organized themselves into the desired configuration.
For perspective, 10 hydrogen atoms laid side by side measure about 1 nanometer across, and a human hair is around 70,000 to 80,000 nanometers thick.
Read the full post (348 words, 1 image)
Original post by Edo
July 13, 2007 at 1:35 pm · Filed under Household, Miniaturization, Nanotech
Wake up and smell the pencil lead, says Japanese stationery and writing instrument manufacturer Pentel, who has combined the power of nanotechnology with the knowledge of expert aromatherapists to develop a new type of fragrant pencil lead. Featuring a long-lasting aroma designed to enhance mental capacity, the pencil lead — called “Ain supplio” — recently won the coveted Stationery of the Year Award (2007).
Read the full post (234 words, 1 image)
Original post by Edo
April 11, 2007 at 9:45 am · Filed under Imaging/Display, Material, RIKEN, Display, Nanotech
A team of researchers led by professor Hideo Hono of the Tokyo Institute of Technology has developed a new type of alumina cement that conducts electricity like metal by altering the crystal structure at the nano level.
Read the full post (238 words, 1 image)
Original post by Edo
February 2, 2007 at 10:36 am · Filed under security, Imaging, Miniaturization, Nanotech
On February 1, Toppan Printing unveiled new nanotext printing technology for inserting microscopic text into holographic images. The company says they plan to use nanotext to provide an extra layer of security to their “Crystagram” holographic anti-counterfeit technology. Test production is set to begin later this month.
Toppan’s holographic nanotext printing uses electron beams (EB) to print characters 30 times smaller than possible with existing “microtext” technology. With a resolution of about 100 nanometers, it is now possible to print more than 20 holographic characters in a space the width of a human hair (about 80 microns).
Holograms have long been used as an effective method for preventing the counterfeit of items ranging from gift certificates to credit cards to luxury brand products, but organizations find themselves locked into a race with counterfeiters that are quick to adopt new technologies. Nanotext, Toppan argues, provides the next hurdle for counterfeiters to overcome.
Toppan is now working on the technology necessary for mass production, and full market release is scheduled for autumn 2007. The company is aiming for first-year sales of 300 million yen ($2.5 million).
[Source: Toppan press release]
Original post by Edo
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