Introduction to Nanoscience and Nanotechnology

Nanoscience is the study of what happens to materials that are extremely small—invisible to the naked eye and only observable with specialized microscopes. Formally, nanoscience studies systems or materials measuring less than 100 nanometers. That is, they are so tiny that they barely reach a few millionths of a millimeter.

To understand these dimensions, it is necessary to realize that if a millimeter is divided into one million equal parts, each of those parts is a nanometer. At these dimensions, it is possible to see materials through electron microscopes—that is, microscopes that use a beam of electrons.

But what makes materials so special at such small sizes? It is the number of atoms on the surface; that is, the atoms that, instead of being hidden inside the materials, are exposed on the surface when the material is divided into small sizes.

Atoms on the surface are more reactive than those hidden inside; therefore, at nanometric sizes, properties emerge that differ from those presented by materials at larger sizes. The study of these novel properties gives rise to nanoscience.

And Nanotechnology?

Nanotechnology refers to the applications created from the discovery or manipulation of the properties of materials at the nanoscale. The applications made possible by the knowledge of these new properties give rise to nanotechnology, and some have been implemented for a long time in the devices we use, such as the memory storage of our computers or mobile phones.

One of the main characteristics of nanotechnology is that it is a multidisciplinary activity—meaning various disciplines (such as physics, chemistry, and biology) are involved—and due to the impact of its development, it is considered one of the main drivers of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Nanometric Dimensions