Scanning Probe Microscopy and Nanotechnology Revolution

The importance and timeliness of materials science and engineering in the emerging fields of nanoscience and nanotechnology, driven by the electronics and biotechnology industries cannot be overstated. There is a big gap between the scale of individual molecular structures and the sub-microscopic components on microprocessors. That gap, which spans from about one nanometer to several hundred nanometers (1-100 nm), is where fundamental properties of materials are defined. Using SPMs, scientists and engineers can presently "see" and analyze the atomic and molecular landscapes of material surfaces. SPM-based force-feedback instruments are under development to manipulate nanostructures and "feel" and move the atoms and molecules on a material surface. The evolution of nanoscience and nanotechnology, resulting in better control over the way atoms and molecules assemble into tiny structures; will make possible in the near future an unprecedented technological capability to develop novel materials and advanced materials processes at the molecular and possibly atomic scale.