UniS' nanotechnology expertise on show at Science MuseumMarch 09, 2005The University of Surrey's world-class expertise in nanotechnology research is a key contributor to a new exhibition entitled 'Nanotechnology: small science big deal', now showing at the Science Museum in London. Professor Ravi Silva, from the University's Advanced Technology Institute (ATI), along with PhD students Anthony Miller and Stephen Lyth, have been helping the Science Museum put the exhibition together since last year. 'Nanotechnology: small science big deal' explores the possibilities of building useful structures and devices - even controllable machines - that are no bigger than single molecules. It reveals how nanotechnology products are already changing our world and asks what might happen in the future. Also on display are many amazing images of 'nanoscale' objects, including carbon nanotubes, an area of research in which the University's ATI leads the world. Carbon nanotubes are very thin sheets of graphite rolled into cylinders only one nanometre (equal to one billionth of a metre) in diameter. They are very strong and very light, and exhibit unusual thermal, electronic and structural properties.
Researchers at the ATI created nano-sized messages on a single grain of pollen and on a mat of carbon nanotubes especially for the exhibit. They also provided images of their nanomanipulation system in action, and of a free-standing ATI advertisement built entirely of carbon nanotubes. Additionally, they acted in a consultative role for much of the written information in the exhibit, as well as providing giant models of nanotubes and buckyballs (kindly donated by EPSRC). 'Nanotechnology - small science big deal' runs from 25 February until 31 August 2005 after which it will tour to four UK venues. Surrey, University of | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Related Nanotechnology News Articles Scientists grow 'nanonets' able to snare added energy transfer Using two abundant and relatively inexpensive elements, Boston College chemists have produced nanonets, a flexible webbing of nano-scale wires that multiplies surface area critical to improving the performance of the wires in electronics and energy applications. Creating unconventional metals The semiconductor silicon and the ferromagnet iron are the basis for much of mankind's technology, used in everything from computers to electric motors. In this week's issue of the journal Nature (August 21st) an international group of scientists, including academic and industrial researchers from the UK, USA and Lesotho, report that they have combined these elements with a small amount of another common metal, manganese, to create a new material which is neither a magnet nor an ordinary semiconductor. New 'nano-positioners' may have atomic-scale precision Engineers have created a tiny motorized positioning device that has twice the dexterity of similar devices being developed for applications that include biological sensors and more compact, powerful computer hard drives. University of Pennsylvania Scientists Move Optical Computing Closer to Reality Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania have theorized a way to increase the speed of pulses of light that bound across chains of tiny metal particles to well past the speed of light by altering the particle shape. True properties of carbon nanotubes measured For more than 15 years, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have been the flagship material of nanotechnology. Researchers have conceived applications for nanotubes ranging from microelectronic devices to cancer therapy. Their atomic structure should, in theory, give them mechanical and electrical properties far superior to most common materials. Slipping through cell walls, nanotubes deliver high-potency punch to cancer tumors in mice The problem with using a shotgun to kill a housefly is that even if you get the pest, you'll likely do a lot of damage to your home in the process. Hence the value of the more surgical flyswatter. Nano vaccine for hepatitis B shows promise for third world Chronic hepatitis B infects 400 million people worldwide, many of them children. Even with three effective vaccines available, hepatitis B remains a stubborn, unrelenting health problem, especially in Africa and other developing areas. UNC study: shape, not just size, impacts effectiveness of emerging nanomedicine therapies In the budding field of nanotechnology, scientists already know that size does matter. But now, researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have shown that shape matters even more - a finding that could lead to new and more effective methods for treating cancer and other diseases, from diabetes and multiple sclerosis to arthritis and obesity. A world-leading UK science project switches on first neutrons The UK's ISIS Second Target Station Project moved a major step closer to completion today when the first neutrons were created in the ISIS Second Target Station. The emerging scientific discipline of aeroecology In the history of science and technology, there is an infrequent combination of empirical discoveries, theories and technology developments converge that make it possible to recognize a new discipline. More Nanotechnology News Articles |
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