Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Nanotechnology: The Next Fantastic Optical Voyage?

From: "marcel_rf1" <[email-masked]>
Date: Sat, 12 Jul 2003 09:19:59 -0000

Nanotechnology: The Next Fantastic Optical Voyage?

Jul 14, 2003

Nanotechnology no longer is an obscure R&D mission hidden away in 
underfunded labs. Today, the prefix "nano" is part of American 
vernacular, used by everyone from the hosts of the "Today" show to
the stars of evening sitcoms.

Nanotechnology, sometimes called "molecular manufacturing," deals
with the design and manufacture of extremely small electronic
circuits and mechanical devices built at the molecular level of 
matter.
 
According to the U.K.'s Institute of Nanotechnology, it is a "science 
and technology where dimensions and tolerances in the range of 0.1 
nanometer to 100 nanometers play a critical role." In the fiber-optic 
arena, nanotechnology encompasses micro-electromechanical systems, a 
subject that usually includes nanotechnology but may also include 
technologies higher than the molecular level.

One of the reasons nanotechnology has become one of the latest 
buzzwords was due to the limitation regarding the number of
components that can be fabricated onto a chip. Things have changed. 
Electrical conductors called nanowires reportedly can be built one 
atom thick on  top of each other. As such, a logic gate could be only 
a few atoms  large, and a data bit could be represented by the 
presence or absence  of a single electron, the U.K. group says.

As with every other aspect of business, a trade group has sprung up 
representing those who currently are working on applications for all 
things tiny. The NanoBusiness Alliance, based in Manhattan, says its 
"designed to be a more focused extension of the alliance's efforts to 
broaden awareness and boost the growth of the nanotech industry. With 
a network of board members, advisors, members and supporters, the 
development group seeks to offer research, analysis, relationship 
building, positioning and guidance." Last week, it unveiled plans for 
a task force aimed at addressing health and environmental concerns 
surrounding working with such atomic-sized products. Its first 
findings should be available sometime in September.

However, the group's involvement with the telecom industry in general 
and the fiber industry in particular continues to be minimal, mostly 
due to the economic environment and the lack of commercialized R&D 
serving this arena.

"Telecom and optics are just now entering the commercial 
[nanotechnology] marketplace," says Dr. Nathan Tinker, a co-founder
of the Alliance who admits to devoting more time to materials that
are creating revenues now. But because of the group's mission to help 
guide companies looking to move forward in nanotech, he told Fiber 
Optics News that the number of telecom-related companies seeking 
guidance on this topic has grown during the past few months.
But what really is needed, he says, is both the nod from Wall Street 
and a move by standards-setting bodies to endorse the products of any
nano/telecom/fiber research.

"There needs to be a breaking point in telecom before nanotechnology 
really can take hold," he says. "It's harder to get nano products 
going right now. Nano switches, for example, are having a hard time 
gaining traction because older technology still is being used, and 
it's cheaper," he adds. "However, the stock market is beginning to 
focus on telecom again."

So far, the group has garnered a significant number of members on the 
private and public sides, including optical component maker NanoOpto 
(FON, March 31). President and CEO Barry Weinbaum has spoken at a 
number of Alliance meetings; last May, he and another Alliance 
co-founder, Mark Modzelewski, double-teamed on a CNBC broadcast on 
nanotechnology [Editor's note: that broadcast still can be accessed at
http://commerce.theplatform.com/CNBCwebroot/cnbc_site/Interface/delive
rable.aspx?playlistID=3190984&bandwidth=100&account=NanoOpto+Corporati
on].

"I applaud what this group is trying to do," he says. "It is very 
active in the New York City metropolitan area, trying to clear the
way for an industry to gain a healthy rise in this area of the 
country.

If you want to go back to the 1950s, this area had the ability to be 
Silicon Valley. But the people who invented the transistor went to 
California, even though the invention was given birth here. What the 
Alliance is trying to do is to make sure the next Silicon Valley 
arises in the New York City metropolitan area."

Weinbaum, whose own company is situated in Somerset, N.J., says 
businesses like his are springing up in the New York/New Jersey area, 
and the Alliance has "hundreds of company members." He also credits 
the Alliance with bringing increased media attention to 
nanotechnology. "We're competing well because the technology we have 
is becoming more and more 'everyday,' and we are being viewed as a 
drop-in kind of replacement," Weinbaum says.

"Customers now can look at whether they want to keep what they have 
versus integrating with a different kind of technology."

Another Alliance member, James Von Ehr II, CEO of Zyvex Corporation, 
is devoting much of his time in trying to develop a Texas Silicon 
Valley. "Three years ago, I founded the Texas Nanotechnology 
Initiative, a non-profit organization whose goal is to establish
Texas  as a world leader in the discoveries,development, and 
commercialization of nanotechnology," he says. "TNI has become a
model for the NanoBusiness Alliance and other regional initiatives.

We want to develop a nanotechnology cluster as an economic engine for 
the region. Good jobs are at stake here. While TNI is working to 
assure many of them are in Texas, it is our duty as Americans to do 
all we can to assure that they are in the United States. High-tech, 
private-sector jobs benefit the economy, with a return of $3.32 for 
every dollar invested in research."

The Government's Role

According to the alliance, "The U.S. government conservatively 
predicts a $1 trillion global market for nanotechnology in little
over a decade. Nearly every Fortune 500 company has launched - or is 
preparing to launch - nanotechnology R&D and investment programs. The 
number of nanotech start-ups in the U.S. has doubled over the past 
year to over 1,2000 and is expected to double again in 2003. And 
unlike the many waves of technological development over the past 75 
years, nanotechnology is not dominated by the United States. Japan, 
China, the EU, Switzerland, Russia, South Korea, Canada, Australia and
others are all significant players in the nanotech field. 

Nanotechnology is rapidly becoming the engine that will drive
business expansion and regional development." Indeed, the government 
itself is set to spend more than $700 million on nanotechnology R&D 
this year alone.

Several members of Congress, including Sens. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and 
Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), are strong proponents of such 
funding. The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation 
recently hosted a hearing in conjunction with the progress of the
21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act (S.189), 
introduced last January by Wyden. If adopted and signed into law, the 
bill would authorize more than $2 billion during the next three years 
for nanoscience, nanoengineering, nanotechnology research and other 
purposes.

Alliance member Von Ehr told senators funding and support for 
statewide nanotechnology initiatives like his own need to be
addressed in the bill. Fellow panelist Dr. Kent A. Murphy, founder
and CEO of Luna Innovations that focuses on instrumentation and 
fiber-optics measurement devices, told the committee nanotechnology 
will push communication and computing in three ways: by facilitating 
quantum computing for future generation systems that calculate on a 
never realized-scale for defense systems; by developing molecular 
electronics for next-gen computing, single molecule transistors and
storage devices; and by the manufacturing of optical devices using 
nano-structured materials for higher-rate communications.

------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~-->
Free shipping on all inkjet cartridge & refill kit orders to US & Canada. Low prices up to 80% off. We have your brand: HP, Epson, Lexmark & more.
http://www.c1tracking.com/l.asp?cid=5510
http://us.click.yahoo.com/GHXcIA/n.WGAA/ySSFAA/61FxlB/TM
---------------------------------------------------------------------~->

Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/