nanomanufacturing

nanomanufacturing
Name	Nanomanufacturing
Field	Nanotechnology
Related	Nanofabrication; Nanomaterials; Microfabrication

Contents

nanomanufacturing Nanomanufacturing is the production of materials, devices, and systems at the nanoscale through controlled assembly, synthesis, and patterning. It spans laboratory-scale techniques, pilot production, and industrial processes that connect discoveries from laboratories such as Bell Labs, IBM Research, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, MIT Lincoln Laboratory to commercialization efforts by firms like Intel Corporation, Samsung Electronics, TSMC, IBM, and Nanosys. The field bridges work done at Harvard University, Stanford University, California Institute of Technology, University of Cambridge, and ETH Zurich with standards set by bodies such as National Institute of Standards and Technology, International Organization for Standardization, and Underwriters Laboratories.

Overview and definitions

Nanomanufacturing describes controlled production at scales typically between 1 and 100 nanometers, encompassing methods developed in labs like Los Alamos National Laboratory and Rutherford Appleton Laboratory and commercialized by entities such as 3M and Corning Incorporated. Definitions vary across documents from European Commission, National Nanotechnology Initiative, World Health Organization, and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development that influence terminology used by IEEE, American Chemical Society, Royal Society, and Royal Academy of Engineering. The term differentiates from related practices in places like Semiconductor Research Corporation or institutions like Fraunhofer Society by emphasizing manufacturability, throughput, and integration into supply chains regulated by Food and Drug Administration and overseen sometimes in standards by British Standards Institution.

Top-down and bottom-up approaches derive from methods developed in programs at Bell Labs, IBM Research, Sandia National Laboratories, and firms such as ASML Holding. Top-down techniques include lithography variants from EUV lithography projects led by ASML, electron-beam lithography used in work by NIST, and focused ion beam machining as employed at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Bottom-up techniques include self-assembly studied at Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, chemical vapor deposition pioneered at DuPont and GE Research, atomic layer deposition researched at Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology, and molecular beam epitaxy advanced by Bell Labs. Additional techniques include nanoimprint lithography commercialized by Obducat AB, directed self-assembly informed by research at Columbia University and University of California, Berkeley, colloidal synthesis from groups at University of Oxford, and DNA origami methods developed by Caltech and University of Chicago. Process tools and metrology evolved at facilities like SEMATECH, IMEC, Tyndall National Institute, and CSEM.

Materials central to production include carbon-based materials studied at Rice University and University of Manchester (fullerenes, carbon nanotubes, graphene), semiconductor nanocrystals developed at Bell Labs and Nanosys, metallic nanoparticles synthesized by teams at Max Planck Society and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and dielectric thin films from companies such as Applied Materials. Nanoscale structures include quantum dots commercialized by Nanosys and researched at University of California, Santa Barbara, nanowires advanced at University of New South Wales, metamaterials explored at Duke University and University of Pennsylvania, and nanoporous membranes developed at Imperial College London and ETH Zurich. Composites combining matrices from BASF or Dow Chemical Company with nanofillers have been studied at Sandia National Laboratories and Argonne National Laboratory.

Scaling lab processes to manufacturing involves pilot lines at Intel Corporation, TSMC, GlobalFoundries, and infrastructure like Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation and SK Hynix. Process control and yield management use practices from Toyota Motor Corporation and General Electric adapted to nanoscale metrology tools from KLA Corporation and Thermo Fisher Scientific. Standardization efforts are coordinated by International Organization for Standardization, ASTM International, National Institute of Standards and Technology, and advisory groups at World Health Organization and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Supply chains include specialty chemical suppliers such as Merck KGaA and Sigma-Aldrich and fabrication service providers like Jabil Inc. and TSV Systems. Quality frameworks borrow from ISO 9001, and regulatory testing often references methods developed at National Institutes of Health and European Medicines Agency.

Applications span information technology and memory by Intel Corporation, Samsung Electronics, and Micron Technology; energy devices at companies like First Solar and research at National Renewable Energy Laboratory; biomedical devices informed by trials at Mayo Clinic and Johns Hopkins University; sensors and MEMS produced by Texas Instruments and Analog Devices; and coatings and composites used by Boeing and Airbus. Consumer electronics leverage advances commercialized by Apple Inc. and Sony Corporation, while defense applications relate to projects at DARPA and procurement by NATO partners. Startups emerging from incubators such as Y Combinator or accelerators like Techstars have sought venture funding from firms like Sequoia Capital and Andreessen Horowitz.

Research on risks has been conducted at institutions including National Institutes of Health, Environmental Protection Agency, World Health Organization, European Environment Agency, and Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. Occupational safety practices from Occupational Safety and Health Administration and exposure assessment methods from NIOSH inform protocols used at laboratories in Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Brookhaven National Laboratory, and industrial sites like DuPont. Life-cycle assessment and environmental impact studies reference standards from ISO committees and reports by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and European Chemicals Agency. Remediation and waste handling draw on expertise at EPA Superfund programs and remediation firms linked to Bechtel Corporation and Jacobs Engineering Group.

Economic implications influence policy debates in forums at World Economic Forum, United Nations, OECD, and national bodies such as U.S. Congress committees and European Commission directorates. Regulation intersects with agencies including Food and Drug Administration, Environmental Protection Agency, European Medicines Agency, and national patent offices like United States Patent and Trademark Office. Ethical discourse has been shaped by reports from Royal Society, National Academy of Sciences, Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues, and NGOs such as Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth. Workforce development involves universities like MIT, Stanford University, and vocational programs tied to corporations including Intel Corporation and Applied Materials.