building nanostructures and treating diseases on their own power. Before these nanodevices can be used on a mass scale, however, a nanoscale power source must be developed. There are two major requirements that this power source must fulfill. First, it must be small enough that it maintains the nanoscale size advantage of the device after it is coupled with that device. Second, these devices must be able to generate power from their immediate surroundings.Scientists from the Georgia Institute of Technology recently published an article in Science detailing the creation of a nanoscale generator (see figure 1) capable of generating power from environmental phenomena such as ultrasonic waves, mechanical vibrations, and even blood flow. These generators consist of zinc-oxide nanowires (nanowires are nanotubes made out of elements other than carbon) which create charges based on their movements in relation to a jagged silicon electrode plate (see figure 2).
The nanowires are moved by environmental forces such as waves or vibrations, which cause charge to be transfered from the wires to the electrode. This transfer of charge can create a current on the level of nano-Amps which, with further optimization, could lead to up to 4 watts of power delivered per square centimeter.
These nanogenerators are non-toxic and represent a large step in the development of nanoscale "smart molecules". Imagine drugs that live in your body and work to not only cure ailments, but maintain the body and prevent potential ailments as well. These generators could provide the power necessary for such long term pharmaceutical action.
(FIGURE 1 from HipTechBlog.com, FIGURE 2 from Science article)
2 comments:
Don't we already have medicines that act as preventatitives? How does nanotechnology make that process any better? Cheaper? More efficient? Not sure of the distinction
The best way that I like to think about nanotechnology is that it is creating solutions and materials from the bottom-up (i.e. atom by atom) as opposed to top-down (i.e. processing raw material or "discovering" a pharmaceutical). The benefits of this bottom-up approach can include personalizing a medicine to the patient, targeting a very specific area of the body, or simply having "smart" medicines charged with maintaining certain body functions like a nanoscale maid. Most of this thought is still theoretical, however, so your guess is as good as mine as to where nanotech will lead us.
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