Nanoscale Chemistry Materials

What is Nanoscale Chemistry Materials?  A question often asked when discussing Chemical Science.  In order for you to get a better grasp of the subject, you should begin by comprehending what the term nanotechnology encompasses.  Nanotechnology is the science or the study of harnessing the potentials of matter in a smaller scale, at nanoscale to be more specific, wherein the study is more concerned on the atomic and molecular level.  Consequently, it may be easier for you to comprehend thatNanoscale Chemistry Material is the science of studying and applying the properties of matter at the microscopic level of atoms and molecules.

History of Nanotechnology

Perhaps you have heard of the instrument called Scanning Tunneling Microscope (or STM), which is a critical piece in the nanotechnology field because of its capability of imaging atoms; the STM was developed in 1981 by Gerd Binnig and Heinrich Rohrer. Furthermore, another notable development related to nanoscale chemistry materials was the discovery of fullerenes by the group of Robert Curl, Harry Kroto and Richard Smalley.  The concept and research of fullerenes was then adopted and popularized by K. Eric Drexler, who went on to conceptualize the most important terms associated with nanoscale chemistry materials.

Importance of Nanoscale Chemistry

Nanoscale Chemistry and its applications, subsequently known as Nanoscale Chemistry Materials, greatly impact other branches of science, such as:

  • Chemical Engineering
  • Biomaterials
  • Physics
  • Nuclear Science
  • Electronics Engineering

Dealing with matter at the atomic and molecular level greatly enhances the yield of any chemical synthesis or reaction that scientists are working on, and this is what paved the way to the discovery and synthetic production of commercial polymers and other composite materials. Moreover, the research of nanoscale chemistry materials also enabled scientists to manufacture smaller semi-conductors and electronic chips, which in turn are now used for various electronics. 

Scanning Probe Microscopy

Nanotechnology, and in essence Nanoscale Chemistry Materials, has been made possible due to the huge advancement of technology in the last few years.  In ancient times, physicists and chemists tried combining different types of materials, but they were not able to observe the reaction at an atomic level. Even during the time of modern alchemists and up to today, the same method has been employed but with a lot of improvements, including the use of nanoscale microscopes.

Ever since microscopes were invented in the late 1500s, they have allowed scientists to discover new chemicals, including those that are part of the nanoscale chemistry materials.As time went by, the microscope was improved to have better resolution and to have a greater zoom; recently, other tools such as the SMT has vastly improved the experiments that manage Nanoscale Chemistry Materials. Moreover, the SMT can also be used with the Scanning Probe Microscopy, which has given way to clear and crisp images at a nanoscale; this has enables scientists to observe chemical reactions at an atomic and molecular level. The following list shows the different methods of Scanning Probe Microscopy for nanoscale chemistry materials:

  • Scanning Tunneling Microscopy
  • Scanning Force Microscopy
  • Scanning Nearfield Optical Microscopy
  • Magnetic Force Microscopy
  • Scanning Capacitance Microscopy

 

 

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