Nanotechnology is changing our lives

After the era of steam and huge mechanical machines that began at the end of the eighteenth century, and the era of silicon, which dawned with the invention of the first transistor in the early fifties, human civilization entered a new phase since the beginning of the nineties, which is the era of nanotechnology. The motto of this technology was the manufacture of materials whose sizes measured in nanometers have amazing properties and infinitesimal machines with amazing capabilities. So what is nanotechnology? What are its applications?

Nanoscience can be defined as the sum of research and techniques related to the creation of new technologies and methods whose dimensions are measured in nanometers, which is part of a million parts of a millimeter. These innovations are called nanobodies or nanoscale devices.

It is known that the diameter of a human hair is about one hundred thousand nanometers. The size of the virus is approximately one hundred nanometers. The human eye cannot see an object less than 10,000 nanometers in size.

The American physicist Richard Feynman was the first to refer to this new scientific field, and called for its exploration, which is the field of "infinitesimal", in one of his lectures he gave in December 1959, and nanoscience did not witness its true beginning until after the discovery of "microscope" Tunneling survey in 1981, which is used to view the components of the atom and study the composition of molecules.

The idea came in the mid-eighties to three researchers from Rice University in Boston to "stack" 60 carbon atoms in a form previously unfamiliar in nature, which is in the form of a sphere with five and hexagonal shapes on its surface, as is found in soccer. This new material was called fullerene, and from this material the first carbon nanotube was made in 1991.

The discovery of graphene contributed greatly to the advancement of (European) nanotechnology.

Different properties

The results of research in this field showed that an atom or a small group of atoms (the size of ten hydrogen atoms equals 1 nanometer) does not have the same physical properties when isolated as if it were inside a large body.

If we take a cube of carbon (graphite) with a side length of ten centimeters and cut it into four parts, we would get four cubes with sides of 2.5 centimeters. Each of these cubes has a black color and has the same properties as the first cube. If we continue the fractionation process to the order of a thousandth of a millimeter (that is, a micrometer equals a thousand nanometers) we will get the same thing. However, if we reach dimensions of about a hundred nanometers, the properties change and the cubes lose their normal color.

As we know, the color of gold in its normal state is yellow, but it turns transparent when the gold grains are less than 20 nanometers in size, and with the increase in miniaturization, their color turns from green to orange and then to red. This means that very small objects have different properties.

The Tunisian researcher says that in such dimensions the known (classical) physical rules become inapplicable and are replaced by the rules of quantum physics.

Interest in this field has increased, especially with the discovery of graphene by Dutch and Russian researcher Andrzej Gim in 2004, and for this he won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2010. Today, the field of nanoscience and nanotechnology has become one of the most important scientific fields in which developed countries compete - chiefly the United States, Germany and Japan. And South Korea and China - in publishing scientific articles and registering patents, including most scientific fields such as medicine, electronics, mechanics, biology, industrial intelligence, and others. It is expected that the size of the nanotechnology market will reach about one thousand billion dollars in 2015.

Many uses

In the medical field, scientists have been able to manufacture precise machines the size of blood cells that can treat many diseases that require surgery, such as removing tumors or blockages inside the arteries. Scientists at the US Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) are also working to create accurate machines to inject them into the bodies of astronauts in order to monitor the health of the body and deal early with the diseases that may affect them without the need for a doctor.

In the same field as well, the Italian doctor and researcher Silvano Dragoniere from the University of Bari has created a portable electronic nose that uses carbon nanotubes that is able to diagnose diseases such as cancer by analyzing the air that comes out of the lungs during exhalation, which contains more than 3000 volatile organic compounds. It is known that the only way to detect this disease currently is a scanner.

In the field of energy, many research teams in different regions of the world are devising devices to store energy in general, and nanotechnology will help produce batteries that store large amounts of energy for long periods. This will contribute to producing cars that operate with clean energy at a lower cost and reduce dependence on fossil energies (oil) that are currently approved. The researchers also seek to develop transparent solar cells with very high yields close to 100%. Knowing that the solar cells used today do not exceed 20% on average.

In recent years, many other applications of nanotechnology have appeared, including smart clothes capable of producing energy or removing dirt and microbes by themselves, and glass that is dust-repellent and non-conductive to heat. And the manufacture of materials harder than steel with light weight, and the creation of holographic (three-dimensional) screens are transparent and foldable.

" The coming years will witness the spread of chip implants and nan electronic devices to replace damaged parts of the human body, such as the retina, hands, skin, and others."

Applications to come

Tunisian researcher in the field of nanotechnology Kamal Basbas says that some future applications are currently being tested in advanced research centers, including repairing infected cells inside the human body, and changing sections of the DNA molecule with nanobots to avoid disease, as well as developing The "Internet of Things" technology, by which it is possible to remotely connect to equipment and tools such as car keys, washing machine, refrigerator, and others.

The coming years will witness the spread of microchip implants and nanoelectronic devices to replace damaged parts of the human body, such as the retina, hands, skin, and others.

The researcher adds that an experiment is currently underway within the framework of a project to follow the source of meat intended for consumption by means of slices capable of identifying locations, conducting meat analysis and storing information during all stages of production and distribution. The consumer of this food item can read the information stored on the slide to know its source, how long it remains in the refrigerator and its ability to be consumed.

health damages

In the midst of the rapid spread of this technology, medical studies have begun to appear over the past few years, confirming the health risks of materials manufactured using carbon nanotubes.

These studies indicated that they had found evidence that new carbon nanomaterials cause malignant tumors to appear in people who deal with them directly. The microscopic nature of this substance makes it easy to enter the body through skin pores or inhalation. Today, there is no medical treatment that can get rid of these substances if they enter the body.

Apparently, these warnings will not stop the New Age train (the era of nanotechnology) after its transformation to the maximum speed, and it is expected, according to future studies, that this technology will reach its peak in exploitation around the year 2030. As for the medical risks, "nanotechnology" may find a solution at a later time.