NANOTECHNOLOGY Nan otec Highlights from 25 years hn o lo g y iopscience.org/nano anniversary Positioning Systems FOR MICROSCOPY P-545 – Dynamic M-687 – Low-Profile, PIFOC® – Scans and Motion in 3 Axes Precision XY Stage Positions Objectives Travel ranges to 200 μm Travel ranges to 135 mm Travel ranges to 1 mm Resolution in the Minimum incremental motion Resolution in the nano meter range up to 0.1 μm, highly stable nanometer range Response time in the range Velocity to 120 mm/s Minimum settling time of a few milliseconds Positioning systems from PI are particularly suited for the most chal- Physik Instrumente (PI) lenging appli ca tions in micro scopy, life science, biotech nology or GmbH & Co. KG medical technology. They offer sub nanometer resolution, large travel Tel. +49 (721) 4846-0 ranges and they are extremelyfast. For more information, contact us: [email protected] · www.pi.ws PIEZO NANO POSITIONING PI-MICROSCOPY pi_130535_kombi_m2_146x115_en_neu.indd 1 19.09.13 15:49 iopscience.org/nano Nan otec hn o lo g Foreword y anniversary Dear colleagues, As the first peer-reviewed journal in nanoscale science and technology Nanotechnology has seen the field develop from a select community early in its inception to the huge international research enterprise it is today. The journal has grown from a quarterly to a weekly publication, and publishes several times more papers per year than most of its peers. New territory in 1990, working at the nanoscale posed a number of challenges, such as the accentuated effects of variations in a number of system parameters. Attempts to engage in nanoscale research without first addressing these issues were described by David Whitehouse, first Editor-in-Chief of the journal, as ‘akin to performing a surgical operation with a blunt instrument on an excited jelly’. The journal has always recognised the importance of multidisciplinary approaches in nanotechnology research. Yet shifts in the general focus of research in the field can be seen as the field matured with papers moving from largely instrument-oriented characterization studies to the detailed insights and demonstrated applications reported today. Research in nanotechnology is now a massive global endeavour and the journal continues to house leading papers that both define and influence the direction of activity in the field. As well as primary research articles, the journal publishes topical reviews to provide context to the latest research, special issues where papers on the latest research in a particularly topical field are collated in one issue, newsy ‘labtalk’ articles where research papers are covered simply in brief, author interviews in our publisher’s picks, and perspective articles covering the translation of research from the lab to industry and commerce. The journal has embraced the multimedia opportunities open to electronic publications with video abstracts, movie file figures and, as a celebration of the 25th volume, the launch of Nanotechnology Discussions podcasts where a panel of eminent figures in the community discuss topical issues relating to research reported in the journal. We hope you enjoy this special issue celebrating the past 25 years of Nanotechnology. Mark Reed Editor-in-Chief, Nanotechnology E-mail [email protected] iopscience.org/nano Front cover image: Crossings of emitter subband levels (n’) with quantum dot levels (n) as a function of applied bias. M A Reed, J N Randall and J H Luscombe ‘Non-equilibrium quantum dots: transport’ Nanotechnology (1990) 1 63-66. Nanotechnology 3 iopscience.org/nano Materials Science Materials Driving Innovation From Aldrich® Materials Science Materials Fabrication • Precursors for Nanomaterials and Nanocomposites; Monomers; TM Materials Science Volume 7, Number 3 Deposition Precursors for PVD, CVD and Sputtering Innovative Polymers Engineered for Drug Delivery and Tissue Engineering Electronics • Nanowires, Printed Electronics Inks & Pastes; Materials for OPV, OFET, OLED; Nanodispersions; CNTs & Graphene Biodegradable Polyester-based Nanoparticle Formation by Miniemulsion Technique Versatile Cell Culture Scaff olds via Bio-orthogonal Click Reactions Targeting a better quality of life Chitosan-based Biomaterials Biocompatible Dendritic Building Blocks for Advanced Biomedical Biomedical Research • Materials for Bone and Tissue Engineering: Nanoclays, PEGs, Biodegradable & Natural Polymers; Functionalized Nanoparticles, 79073_MM7-3_US_r6.indd a 8/6/2012 9:39:15 AM Block Copolymers, & Dendrimers Subscribe (free) to: Gold Nanoparticle Dispersions Material Matters™ aldrich.com/mm aldrich.com/matsci ©2013 Sigma-Aldrich Co. LLC. All rights reserved. Aldrich and Sigma-Aldrich are registered trademarks 81276 of Sigma-Aldrich Co. LLC, registered in the US and other countries. 1103 4 Nanotechnology 81276 Nanotechnology Ad_ 170mmx260mm_2.indd 1 10/1/2013 12:04:30 PM iopscience.org/nano Contents Biology and medicine 6 Nanotechnology Timeline 14–19 Jeff Karp Sensing and actuating 20 Interview with 7 Jurgen Brugger Miguel Jose Yacaman Interview with 21 Interview with 7 Hans Peter Lang Tom Webster Interview with 21 Electronics and photonics 8 Xiao Wei Sun, Lionel Vayssieres and Yi Yang Meyya Meyyappan Materials: synthesis or self-assembly 22 Interview with 9 Stanislaus Wong Craig Lent Materials Science Interview with 23 Interview with 9 Darrell H Reneker Stuart Lindsay Materials Driving Interview with 23 Energy at the nanoscale 10 Maximilian Fichter Innovation Gary Brudvig Materials: properties, characterization or tools 24 From Aldrich® Materials Science Interview with 11 Mervyn Miles Vladimir Dyakonov Materials Fabrication Interview with 25 • Precursors for Nanomaterials and Nanocomposites; Monomers; TM Materials Science Interview with 11 Hans-Jürgen Butt Volume 7, Number 3 Deposition Precursors for PVD, CVD and Sputtering Innovative Polymers Engineered for Drug Delivery and Tissue Engineering Silke Christiansen Interview with 25 Electronics Patterning and nanofabrication 12 Anthony Guiseppi-Elie • Nanowires, Printed Electronics Inks & Pastes; Materials for OPV, S Mark Spearing OFET, OLED; Nanodispersions; CNTs & Graphene Editorial Board 26 Biodegradable Polyester-based Nanoparticle Formation by Miniemulsion Technique Versatile Cell Culture Scaff olds via Bio-orthogonal Click Reactions Targeting a better quality of life Chitosan-based Biomaterials Biocompatible Dendritic Building Blocks for Advanced Biomedical Interview with 13 Biomedical Research • Materials for Bone and Tissue Engineering: Nanoclays, PEGs, Markku Leskelä Journal team 27 Biodegradable & Natural Polymers; Functionalized Nanoparticles, 79073_MM7-3_US_r6.indd a 8/6/2012 9:39:15 AM Block Copolymers, & Dendrimers Interview with 13 Joachim P Spatz Subscribe (free) to: Gold Nanoparticle Dispersions Material Matters™ aldrich.com/mm DiD You KnoW? DiD You KnoW? Nanotechnology now has a YouTube channel Look out for the publication of at youtube.com/nanotechnologyvideo the Nanotechnology 25th Volume Special Issue in January 2014. aldrich.com/matsci ©2013 Sigma-Aldrich Co. LLC. All rights reserved. Aldrich and Sigma-Aldrich are registered trademarks 81276 of Sigma-Aldrich Co. LLC, registered in the US and other countries. 1103 Nanotechnology 5 81276 Nanotechnology Ad_ 170mmx260mm_2.indd 1 10/1/2013 12:04:30 PM iopscience.org/nano insights from the Board Biology and medicine Section editor: Jeff Karp Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA The comparable dimensions of nanostructures and biological tissue features have a number of implications in medicine. By the end of the 1990s nanostructures were already revealing their huge potential in this area and work since has led to considerable progress in a range of areas including imaging, DNA sequencing, cancer diagnosis and treatment, and antibacterial agents. Ever since Louis Pasteur publicised his theory of germ-mediated putrefaction in the mid-nineteenth century there has been a growing preoccupation with developing more effective antiseptic agents. The increasing focus on nanostructures highlighted a possible potential to use metal nanoparticles as antibacterial agents. However, as Miguel Jose Yacaman points out, it was not clear what mechanism was behind their apparent antibacterial activity. In 2005 he and colleagues in Mexico and Texas in the US published a Nanotechnology article on studies using high angle annular dark field (HAADF) scanning transmission electron microscopy to investigate the effect of silver nanoparticles in the range of 1–100 nm on Gram-negative bacteria. “The main contribution of the paper was to really understand the role of the nanoparticles,” suggests Yacaman, “Not only in emitting ions, but also in attaching to the surface of the cells and the surface of the particles of bacteria.” The paper inspired considerable research activity in the field, and silver-nanoparticle-functionalized implants are now being explored in clinic trials. While such studies focused on destroying bacterial cells, others investigated the potential use of nanostructures to promote mammalian cell proliferation on implants. Thomas J Webster and colleagues at Purdue University in the US emphasise how the molecular building blocks of life have unique properties determined by size, folding and patterns at the nanoscale. “It is because of this that it stands to reason that bone and neural cells are naturally accustomed to interacting with surfaces with a large degree of nanometre roughness.” Their 2003 article in Nanotechnology investigated the possible advantages of using nanostructures,