Nanoscience and Nanotech: Industrial Application and Transformation

The nanoscale is both ordinary and extraordinary. On one hand, it is simply a dimension—a very, very small dimension. But this tiny scale has enormous implications. It is the scale at which light interacts with matter, and at which materials are “programmed” with their structural and surface properties. It is the scale at which biology, life itself, occurs.  

We invite you to join leading MIT experts to explore the latest nanoscale discoveries and applications in our three-day course, Nanoscience and Nanotech: Industrial Application and Transformation. We give a broad perspective on the uses of nanoscience and technology. Then, we focus on how we “see” things of the nanoscale and how we use the nanoscale-designed sensors to “see” things we couldn’t previously.

How are nanotechnology and nanoscience used in industry now?
Nanotechnology and nanoscience are implicitly used across all industries, ranging from medicine and homeland security to transportation, energy production, manufacturing, food, and retail. The use for nanotechnology is visible in all sectors; however, many leaders, managers, and engineers are unsure of what exactly nanoscience is or how their businesses could benefit from it. As a result, they lose out on valuable opportunities. This course sits at the intersection between nanoscience and data science.

In Nanoscience and Nanotech: Industrial Application and Transformation, we rise to the challenge and help business and engineering leaders appreciate the distinctiveness and enormous potential of nanotechnology and nanoengineering. Modern tools make it possible to be explicit in our manipulations and characterization of  nanoscale in the creation and control of materials, devices, and processes.

How will nanotechnology and nanoscience be used in industry in the future?
Fabrication (or manufacturing) and characterizing at the nanoscale require specialized capabilities. When you’re working at the nanoscale, you must control environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity, air quality, and electromagnetic interference. Impurities as small as a speck of dust, a skin cell, or a single, subtle vibration are much bigger than a nanometer, and if you’re trying to build or characterize at this scale, any contaminants may impede you. Engineers and manufacturers working at the nanoscale must expand their toolboxes and become adept at using highly specialized equipment for fabrication, assembly, measurement, and instrumentation. You will learn how to connect the nanoscale sensor to the macroscale world.

MIT scientists and engineers are discovering astonishing new behaviors at the nanoscale and inventing powerful ways to put them to work. Researchers across all scientific disciplines—materials, photovoltaics, computation, chemistry, and biologics, to name just a few—are developing uses for nanotechnology. New applications in manufacturing, biology and chemistry, electronics and computation are powered by the increasing accessibility of toolsets for the fabrication, study, and manipulation of nanoscale structures and systems. 

Finally, though nano is tiny, the data sets it can generate are massive. Nanotechnology wouldn’t be possible without data, both as inputs and outputs. Just like all other business processes, nanotechnology requires enormous amounts of data to establish the right conditions for operating equipment. Then, once the work begins, even bigger data sets are generated. It is critical to be able to manage, process, and utilize these data streams. 

Through the lens of industry applications, MIT research, and at-home, hands-on activities, this course provides a framework for thinking about, applying, and commercializing the power of the nanoscale.

• Learn how nanotechnology and nanoscience are used in industrial sectors
• Examine how fundamental assumptions change at the nanoscale and explore the consequent effects on materials, systems, and applications
• Deep dive into nanosensors and instrumentation and data science
• Learn about the new research that will impact your career or business
• Delve into case studies that examine cutting-edge tools and strategies for building and discovering at the nanoscale, including fabrication techniques for micro- and nanofabrication of sensors, bottom-up synthesis of nanosystems, and characterization methods that apply to multiple fields
• Explore the inherent challenges and opportunities in managing, processing, and utilizing data streams associated with connecting the physical to the digital for nano applications

Day 1

• A brief introduction to nano:  surprisingly familiar yet ripe for discovery
• Nano science through the lens of new companies and entrepreneurship
• Nanoscience: new behaviors in physical systems 
• Nanotechnology: applying insights across disciplines                            
• Survey of new companies, current applications and their supporting toolsets and established companies deploying new products in new markets
• Tour of fabrication and metrology toolsets inside new MIT.nano facility
• Collaborative analysis                            
• The focus theme of the course is Sensors and Sensing Systems.
• The Design and Use of: Sensors that are made via Nano Fabrication. 
• Instruments to Characterize phenomena at the nano scale:
  • The use of Data from Sensors for Manufacturing and Decision Making
  • The use of Data from Instruments for accelerated learning and modeling    

Day 2

• Case studies of startup companies, MIT-based research and/or commercialized applications in nanoscience and nanoengineering.
• Facilitated discussion
• Interactive discussions about participants’ existing and planned use of nano    

Day 3

• The visualization and interaction side of data from nano metrology and sensors:  managing, processing, and visualization
• Final Q&A and wrap-up: what next?    

This course is appropriate for technology and engineering professionals, as well as managers, who are involved in nanoscience in any industry, including:

• Engineers who work with—or want to learn to work with—nano sensors and instrumentation
• Technology professionals who are looking to improve materials, systems, and applications at the nanoscale
• Managers who need a thorough understanding of the opportunities and challenges related to nano’s impact on industrial sectors 

Requirements

Computers are required.