FIND OUT MORE. Atoms 157 • Machines 196–197
HOW COULD NANOTECHNOLOGY BUILD A CARBON CAR?
Nanomachines could make things, such as carbon cars, by linking
carbon atoms one at a time into the diamond structure. These new
cars will be many times stronger, yet lighter than existing versions
made with titanium, aluminium, and steel. A carbon car built by
nanomachines would be light enough to lift with one hand.ARE THERE ANY DANGERS ASSOCIATED
WITH NANOTECHNOLOGY?
One danger is that self-assembling
nanomachines could multiply and spread out
of control – damaging natural materials. They
would have to be programmed so that they
could not escape into the environment in this
destructive way.WHAT IS A NANOMACHINE?
A nanomachine is built from individual atoms,
like the parts of a tiny construction kit, with atomic
wheels and motors. A nanomachine will make
other products from atoms, such as nanovehicles
to transport drugs through the body’s bloodstream.
Vast armies of nanomachines might even assemble. CARBON COMPUTERS, atom by atom.
A nanometre is one billionth of a
metre. This is about a million times
smaller than the full stop on this line.
Nanotechnology aims to make tiny
machines measured in nanometers.
WHAT IS SELF-ASSEMBLY?
Nanomachines will be designed to build and copy
themselves. They will be self-assembling in a
similar way to the molecules that make up living
things. To build a large structure, such as a car,
billions of nanomachines will be
organized to work together.WHAT HAS NANOTECHNOLOGY
ACHIEVED SO FAR?
Nanotechnology is still at a very early stage, but
some progress has been made. Simple wheels, axles,
and gears have been produced. Scientists have already
manipulated individual carbon atoms to produce nano
scale numbers and lettering.At an atomic scale, scientists think carbon will have better
electrical properties than silicon for making computers. A
computer processor could be made by linking individual carbon
atoms. Only nanomachines could work at this scale.NANOTECHNOLOGY BEARING 3
Before complete nanomachines and
robots can be constructed, scientists
will build basic machine components,
such as levers, gears, bearings, and
motors, all at a nano scale. This
computer design shows how a
frictionless bearing might be
assembled from individual atoms.4 NANO FLY
Using nano components
built from carbon and
other atoms, it might be
possible to build intelligent robot
insects such as this fly – pictured on
a computer key. Tiny machines like this
could be used for police surveillance.NANOTECHNOLOGY IN MEDICINE 1
This imaginative artwork shows how nanotechnology might work
in medicine – tiny nanorobots the size of cells are programmed
to travel through the blood stream, finding and repairing defects
in the body’s organs and tissues.CARBON COMPUTER
Nanotechnology
Red blood cellsNanorobot
powered by
a propellernano