Concept of Nanomaterials and its
Applications
Dr. Roli Verma
Head Department of Chemistry
JSSATE, Noida
INTRODUCTION
• The term nano originated from the Greek
word nanos which means 'dwarf. It is one
billiont a meter.
• Nanoscience is the study of the fundamental
principles of molecules and structures at least
one dimension roughly between 1and 100
nanometers. These structures are known as
nanoscale materials.
Size of Nanomaterial
• Nanomaterials are commonly defined as materials with
an average grain size less than 100 nanometers
• Nanomaterials have extremely small size which having
at least one dimension 100 nm
• One billion nanometers equals one meter
• The average width of a human hair is on the order of
100,000 nanometers
What are the materials of nanotech?
Nanostructure Size Example Material or
Application
Clusters, nanocrystals, Radius: Insulators, semiconductors, metals,
quantum dots 1-10 nm magnetic materials
Other nanoparticles Radius: Ceramic oxides, Buckyballs
1-100 nm
Nanowires Diameter: Metals, semiconductors, oxides,
1-100 nm sulfides, nitrides
Nanotubes Diameter: Carbon, including fullerenes,
1-100 nm layered chalcogenides
Adapted from J.Jortner and C.N.R.Rao, Pure Appl Chem 74(9), 1491-1506, 2002
SYNTHESIS OF NANOMATERIALS
• Nanomaterials deal with very fine structures:
a nanometer is a billionth of a meter. The two
mainstream approaches to synthesize
nanomaterials are
• top -down and bottom-up
• i.e. either assemble atoms together or to
dis-assemble (break, or dissociate) bulk solids
into finer pieces un they are constituted of
only a few atoms.
Top Down Approach
• Traditionally, nanomaterials have been prepared by the break-down of
materials using technique developed by solid state physicists. For
example, a large block of silicon wafer can be reduced smaller
components by cutting, etching and slicing down to a desired size or
shape. This is known as the top-down approach. By removing the excess
portion of bulk materials by physical, chemical and mechanical means, the
desired nanostructured systems can be constructed.
• Two well-known top-down approaches are miling (or attrition) and
thermal cycling. Attritio produces nanoparticles of a wide range of
diameter ranging from 20 nm to several hundred nanometers. The shape
of the particles varies as well. They may contain impurities from the
milling medium.
• The nanoparticles made by this process are usually used in the fabrication
nanocomposites and bulk materials having nano grains where perfections
in size and shape, ar presence of impurities do not matter significantly.
Bottom up Approach
• The bottom-up approach, on the other hand,
starts with the individual building units that
are th ODjects of the nanometer scale, such as
atoms, molecules, polymers, and colloids. By
assembling these building units with the
needed controllability, the desired
nanostructured systems can obtained.
Nanomaterials synthesised from the
bottom-up method have novel
physico-chemical. proprieties that differ from
the bulk material.
Classification of Nonmaterial's
• Nanomaterials have extremely small size which having
at least one dimension 100 nm or less. Nanomaterials
can be nanoscale in one dimension (eg. surface films),
two dimensions (eg. strands or fibres), or three
dimensions (eg. particles).
• They can exist in single, fused, aggregated or
agglomerated forms with spherical, tubular, and
irregular shapes.
• Nanostructured materials are classified as Zero
dimensional, one dimensional, two dimensional, three
dimensional structures
WHY NANOMATERIALS BEHAVES DIFFERENTLY???
•when we look at materials on a nanoscale level, the relative importance of the Different
laws of physics shift and effects that we normally do not notice (such as quantum effects)
become more significant, especially for sizes less than 20nm.
•The nanometer feature sizes of nanomaterials also have spatial confinement effect on the
materials, which bring the quantum effects. Nanoparticles can be viewed as a zero
dimension quantum dot while various nanowires and nanotubes can be viewed as quantum
wires. The quantum confinement of nanomaterials has profound effects on the properties
of nanomaterials.
Nanomaterials have unique properties
Applications of Nanomaterials
• Nanophase ceramics
• Nanostructured semiconductors
• Nanosized metallic powders
• Single nanosized magnetic particles
• Nanostructured metal-oxide thin films
• Next-Generation Computer Chips
• Kinetic Energy (KE) Penetrators with Enhanced
Lethality
• Better Insulation Materials
• Low-Cost Flat-Panel Displays
• Tougher and Harder Cutting Tools
Applications of Nanotechnology
Applications of Nanotechnology
QUESTIONS
1. What are nanomaterials. How they are different from
bulk materials?
2. Why do materials behave differently at nanoscale
level?
3. What is the difference between the Top Down and
Bottom Up approach of
4. Discuss the use of synthesis of nano nanoparticles in
medicine.
5. Discuss the application of nanoparticles in electronics.
6. List some uses of nanoparticles in day today life.
7. Write any two application of nanotechnology.
