NANO 101:

EXPLORING THE
NANOWORLD
Lizzie Hager-Barnard, Lawrence Hall of Science
Topics

 What is nano?
 How do properties change at the nanoscale?
 Are nano products safe?
 What are some careers related to nanotechnology?
Intro to Nano

http://www.nisenet.org/catalog/media/intro_nano_video
How Small is Nano?

http://www.nisenet.org/catalog/media/how_small_nano_video
What is Nanotechnology?

Nanotechnology involves manipulating matter at

unprecedentedly small scales to create new or
improved products that can be used in a wide
variety of ways.

http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/seind12/pdf/c07.pdf
Nanotechnology: Small, Different, New

Key ideas:
1. The nanometer is extremely small.
2. At the nanometer scale, materials may behave differently.
3. We can harness this new behavior to make new
technologies.
Why Nano Education?

Drawbacks Advantages
 Not inherently interesting  Fun!
(compared to dinosaurs!)  Breaks down disciplinary
 Below visible threshold, boundaries
younger kids have  Cutting-edge
problems visualizing
 Relevant to future jobs
 Unexpected properties and careers
Nano Not Widely Understood
National Science Board's Science
and Engineering Indicators 2012
Americans remain largely
“24% of Americans report unfamiliar with nano-
having heard ‘a lot’ or ‘some’ technology, despite
about nanotechnology, up four increased funding and a
percentage points from 2008
growing numbers of
and 2006”
products on the market
“44% of Americans report that use nanotechnology.
having heard ‘nothing at all’
about nanotechnology”
http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/seind12/pdf/c07.pdf
An Interdisciplinary Endeavor

Chemistry Biology Physics Engineering

Nanoscience
& Nanotechnology

Medicine Materials Science

Biotechnology Information Technology

What is Nano?
 How Big is a Nanometer?

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 How Big is a Nanometer?

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 How Big is a Nanometer?

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 How Big is a Nanometer?

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 How Big is a Nanometer?

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 How Big is a Nanometer?

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 How Big is a Nanometer?

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 How Big is a Nanometer?

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 How Big is a Nanometer?

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How Big is a Nanometer?

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How Big is a Nanometer?

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How Big is a Nanometer?
 In the time it takes to read this sentence, your
fingernails will have grown approximately one
nanometer (1 nm).

www.starling-fitness.com
How Big is a Nanometer?

 If you could paint a teaspoon of paint one nanometer

thick, how much area would it cover?

?
Joon Han and Justin Smith / Wikimedia Commons
How Big is a Nanometer?

 If you could paint a teaspoon of paint one nanometer

thick, how much area would it cover?

Joon Han, Justin Smith, Kbh3rd, The Anomebot, Pete Markham / Wikimedia Commons
How Big is a Nanometer?

 To cover a football field with a 1nm thick layer of

paint, you would need just 1 teaspoon of paint!

Joon Han and Justin Smith / Wikimedia Commons

How Big is a Nanometer?

Sugar cubes  How many sugar

molecules in a sugar cube?

 What do we need to know

(estimate)?
 Sugar cube = (1 cm)3
 1 sugar molecule = (1 nm)3

 \ 1021 sugar molecules in a

sugar cube

Biswarup Ganguly / Wikimedia Commons

Activity: Measure Yourself

http://www.nisenet.org/catalog
 Did Scientists “Create” Nano?
 No, it was already in nature!

centimeters to micrometers

micrometers

http://www.nisenet.org/catalog
nanometers
 Did Scientists “Create” Nano?
 No, it was already in nature!

centimeters to micrometers
micrometers

http://www.nisenet.org/catalog
nanometers
Smallness Leads to New Properties

Sometimes gravity loses!

http://www.nisenet.org/catalog
Smallness Leads to New Properties

Surface area is
really important!

http://www.nisenet.org/catalog
Surface Areas at the Nanoscale

1 cm cubes 1 mm cubes 1 nm cubes

http://www.nano.gov/nanotech-101/special
How Surface Area Scales (Changes)

For a fixed total

volume, decreasing
the radius by a factor
of two doubles the
surface

Crushing a 1cm
particle into nano
particles increases the
surface area
thousands of times!

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How Surface Area Scales (Changes)

1 nm particles  1010 m2
1 micron particles  107 m2
1 cm particles  103 m2

nano
34
Smallness Leads to New Properties

Reactivity
Melting point Bulk Gold
Bulk Aluminum
Strength
Conductivity
Color
Nano Aluminum
Nano Gold

http://www.carterrecycling.com/myimages/aluminum_cans.jpg http://healthewoman.org/2008/11/11/how-healthy-is-your-workplace/
http://mrsec.wisc.edu/Edetc/nanolab/gold/images/goldp6.jpg http://texasenterprise.org/article/warren-buffet-and-new-calculus-gold
Nano and Me - Aluminum

http://www.nisenet.org/catalog
Stained Glass: Size Matters

Gold particles

http://www.cas.muohio.edu/nanotech/education/k_12.html http://www.horiba.com/scientific/
Stained Glass: Size and Shape Matter

Controlling the Quantum World: The Science of Atoms, Molecules, and Photons, 2007
Stained Glass: Size and Shape Matter

Controlling the Quantum World: The Science of Atoms, Molecules, and Photons, 2007
Stained Glass: Size and Shape Matter

Controlling the Quantum World: The Science of Atoms, Molecules, and Photons, 2007
Stained Glass: Size and Shape Matter

Particle shape also affects the color!

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Native_gold_nuggets.jpg
http://www.cat.gov.in/technology/laser/lpas/pps.html
Activity: Nano Fabric and Magic Sand

http://www.nisenet.org/catalog http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/product/magic-sand
Activity: Nano Fabric

water
air

nano-roughened surface

http://www.nisenet.org/catalog
Zoom into a Lotus Leaf

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 Activity: Nano Sunblock

 Some sunscreen use

chemicals
 Other sunscreens use
zinc oxide

http://www.nisenet.org/catalog vitaderminstitute.com/
 Sunscreens vs Sunblocks, Continued
How could sunscreen and sunblock work?

Sunscreen/Sunblock Sunscreen/Sunblock Sunscreen/Sunblock

Skin Skin Skin

Absorption Reflection Transmission

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 Sunscreens vs Sunblocks, Continued
How could sunscreen and sunblock work?

Sunscreen/Sunblock Sunscreen/Sunblock Sunscreen/Sunblock

Skin Skin Skin

Absorption Reflection Transmission

Sunscreens and sunblocks both usually work through absorption of UV rays

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Sunblocks are better because they absorb more of the UV rays
Inorganic Sunblocks Absorb UV Better

ideal

UVB UVA visible

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 Nano Sunblock

Traditional zinc oxide sun Modern zinc oxide sun blocks are
blocks are very visible fairly invisible after application

vitaderminstitute.com/ http://www.tackletour.com/reviewbluelizard.html
 Nano Sunblock

Same black:white ratio

Can see larger white circles much better
http://www.nisenet.org/catalog
Nano Sunblock

Particles need to be really small to be less noticeable!

Nano ZnO and TiO2 Reflect Less
Light

UVB UVA visible

ideal

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Similar to Halftone Printing

http://desktoppub.about.com/od/scanninggraphics/ss/color_to_bw_6.htm
 Activity: Gummy Capsules

When the liquid droplets come into

contact with the salt water, a chemical
reaction takes place and creates a
polymer.

http://www.nisenet.org/catalog
What’s a Polymer?
Polymers are made up of many many molecules all strung together to
form really long chains (and sometimes more complicated structures, too).

Examples of polymers Where do you find polymers?

http://pslc.ws/macrog/kidsmac/index.htm
 Activity: Graphene

http://www.nisenet.org/catalog
 Forms of Carbon

Diamond Graphite Graphene Nanotube Buckyball

Diamond
Graphite
Phase can be really important!

Structure/bonding really affect properties

• Diamond is one of the hardest materials
• Graphite is soft and slippery; it’s a good
lubricant

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Diamond_and_graphite2.jpg http://www.intechopen.com/source/html/16991/media/image2.png
Activity: Mitten Challenge

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Why We Need “Special” Microscopes

 Can you see nanoscale objects with a regular

optical microscope?
 Let’s say that the smallest object you can resolve
with your eyes is about 0.1 – 0.2 mm which is
100,000 – 200,000 nm
 With a 100x objective, you should be able to
resolve objects that are 1000 – 2000 nm
 So, with a 1000x objective, we should be able to
resolve objects that are 100 – 200nm, right?
Why We Need “Special” Microscopes

 Can you see nanoscale objects with a regular

optical microscope?

100 nm
particle

Particles on the
nanoscale interact
differently with light!

http://www.yorktech.com/science/craig/PHS/Graphics/EM_spectrum.jpg
 Diffraction Limit

Diffraction
Model

 Affects characterization
techniques
 Also important for
photolithography
http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/wave-interference http://cnx.org/content/m25448/latest/graphics1.jpg
 Types of “Special” Microscopes
Optical Scanning Transmission
microscope electron electron
microscope microscope

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optical_microscope http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scanning_electron_microscope
http://itg.beckman.illinois.edu/microscopy_suite/equipment/TEM/
 Types of “Special” Microscopes

Scanning
electron
microscope

Transmission
electron
microscope

http://www.nhm.ac.uk/research-curation/science-facilities/analytical-imaging/imaging/high-resolution-sem/ultra-plus/examples/index.html
http://www.princeton.edu/~cml/html/research/templated_ceramics.html
Activity: Special Microscopes

http://www.nisenet.org/catalog
A Boy And His Atom: The World's Smallest Movie

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSCX78-8-q0
Scanning Probe Microscopy (SPM)

http://virtual.itg.uiuc.edu/training/AFM_tutorial/
Scanning Probe Microscopy (SPM)

Images of a fibroblast cell

from an optical microscope
(using fluorescence) and an
atomic force microscope

http://www.nisenet.org/catalog/programs/exploring_tools_-_special_microscopes_nanodays_08_09_10_11
http://www.asylumresearch.com/Gallery
What Can You Do with SPM?

 Measure surface topography

(“hills”, “valleys”)
 Measure roughness

http://www.asylumresearch.com/Gallery
 What Can You Do with SPM?

 Measure surface topography

(“hills”, “valleys”)
 Measure roughness
 Measure electrical/chemical
properties

Müller et al. Nature Chemical Biology 2009 Müller and Dufrêne Nature Nanotechnology 2008
What Can You Do with SPM?

 Measure surface topography

(“hills”, “valleys”)
 Measure roughness
 Measure electrical/chemical
properties
 Measure material properties
(elasticity, strength) (i) cancer cell
(ii) normal cell

Cross Nature 2007

What Can You Do with SPM?
all cells
 Measure surface topography
(“hills”, “valleys”)
 Measure roughness
cancer cells
 Measure electrical/chemical
properties
 Measure material properties
(elasticity, strength) normal cells

Cross Nature 2007

What Can You Do with SPM?

 Measure surface topography

(“hills”, “valleys”)
 Measure roughness
 Measure electrical/chemical
properties
 Measure material properties
(elasticity, strength)
 Move atoms!

http://www.thenanoage.com/visualization-manipulation.htm
Silver: Great Idea!

 Used to prevent spoilage throughout history

 1800’s: silver used for ulcers

 1920’s: used in wound management

 Multiple studies found it prevents and inhibits the growth

of bacteria
Nano Silver Products

http://www.samsung.com/, http://www.conair.com/, http://www.diabeticsocks4less.com/diabeticcare, http://mrsec.wisc.edu/

Silver: Always a Good Idea?
 Overdose of macro silver causes Argyria

 Inhibits “good bacteria”

 Prevents photosynthesis in algae
 Toxicity of nano silver still unknown

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argyria
Wonders and Worries of Nano

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Consumer Products with Nano

Any technology has risks and

benefits

Who should make decisions

about whether to use certain
nanotechnologies?

Should doctors use nanosilver

catheters to prevent infections?

What about using a nanosilver

washing machine?

http://www.nisenet.org/catalog
Would you use a dangerous technology?

Gasoline can be
dangerous, too!

To make gas safer, there

are regulations for
producing, transporting
and using it safely

How can we think ahead

so we reduce the risks
associate with new
nanotechnologies?
http://www.nisenet.org/catalog
Applications of Nanotechnology

Nanotechnology could change

how we create, transmit, store,
and use energy

Examples:
super-efficient batteries, low-
resistance transmission lines,
cheaper solar cells

New flexible, thin film solar

cells are easier to produce
and install, use less material,
and are cheaper to make

http://www.nisenet.org/catalog
Nanofiltration for Clean Water

In many places, people do

not have access to clean
water

Nanofiltration systems are

a promising solution to this
problem

http://www.nisenet.org/catalog
Nanofiltration for Clean Water

http://www.lifesaversystems.com/press-media/videos
Nanofiltration for Clean Water

http://www.lifesaversystems.com
An Interdisciplinary Endeavor
Engineering Physics

Chemistry
Medicine Nanoscience
&
Nanotechnology

Biotechnology Materials Science

Biology Information Technology

Do You Love Nano, Too?

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