Presentation - Nanoscience and Technology Meet

Dimensions of Nano Science and Technology

I am indeed delighted to be with the scientists in this special meet on Nanotechnology at the Rashtrapati Bhavan today. I am sure that your one-day stay will be scientifically enchanting and useful. You will also have an opportunity to be with the nature in this complex.

Whenever I go for a morning walk in the Mughal Garden, I see the peacocks dancing with its colourful feathers, during this season. When I look at the deep and beautiful colours on the feathers of the peacock in the Rashtrapati Bhavan, I have often wondered how even after many years, the colour of the peacock feather does not fade away. I recall as a young kid, I used to keep peacock feathers in my books. This phenomenon of long lasting original colour to the peacock has come from the God's own creation of nano materials, coated in a peacocks feather and they diffract light, which gives us the rich colours.

Biological Molecular Complexity

Every thing in this universe ? from giant stars to our bodies work on molecular scale. Our hearts and lungs are big objects but all the processes take place at the molecular level. Therefore, everything in our body and in the physical universe is already based on nanotechnology. Observation of the nature and the role of science in understanding it from our research in nano sciences can be converted into a technological product by using the same or similar nano materials which gave the natural colour for the peacock feather, as part of our shirts, sarees, fabric and apparels. It is a welcome destination for science to mature into technology and become a product of utility for the society.

Technology Through Ages

Through out the last 120 centuries, unique cultures have come into existence due to advancement in technology. The first 118 centuries had a dominance of primarily stone, bronze & iron ages. The last two centuries have seen rapid development of chemical age. The advance-ments made inmaterial science and technology gave the impetus for both nuclear and biological age to flourish. Succession of these technology periods has involved progression from simpler materials to more complex forms of science and engineering. We are today at the convergence of Nano, Bio and Information technologies. This age, I feel will create historical revolution and we must be at driver?s seat to contribute towards this societal change.

When I think of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, I am reminded of three personalities. First person is Richard Feynman, who described the concept of 'building machines" atom by atom in his talk at Caltech titled "There is plenty of room at the bottom". The second person is Eric Drexler, who wrote the book titled 'Nano Systems, Molecular machinery, manufacturing and computation". The third person is Prof. CNR Rao, who pioneered and fostered the nano science research in India.

Since independence, the country had all along been taking recourse to technology for societal changes and economic prosperity. A nation that is alert should be sensitive to the changes that take place to the technological fabric of the world and prepare itself for the arrival of newer changes in the horizon.

As the country was acquiring the technologies of steel, agriculture, space, missiles and IT, we grew to be anywhere between third to fifth nation in figure of merit. In information technology we have a possibility of becoming the third knowledge power. We believe that nanotechnology would give us an opportunity, if we take an appropriate and timely action to become one of the important technological nations in the world.

Applications

The world market in 2004 is for nano materials, nano tools, nano devices and nano biotechnology put together is expected to be over hundred billion dollars. It has been noticed that the fastest growing area among these is nanobiotechnology.

Carbon nano tubes and its composites will give rise to super strong, smart and intelligent structures in the field of material science.

Molecular switches and circuits along with nano cell will pave the way for the next generation computers. Ultra dense computer memory coupled with excellent electrical performance will give the society low power, low cost, nano size and yet faster assemblies.

Nano Bio medical sensors will play a major role in glucose detection and endoscopic implants. Drug delivery system will revolutionize the healthcare to a large extent.

The last four decades have also effected the packaging concept. Electronics packaging of the past has given way to the present Microsystems packaging and the shift in the trend is now towards the futuristic nano packaging.

Global Funding

Today, a few countries such as USA, Germany, Japan, UK, have already taken the lead and have invested more coherently and cohesively in thrust areas of Nanotechnology. The global funding for Nanoscience and tech-nology has now risen to approximately 3 billion USD in 2003.

Triad of Nano-Bio-Info Technologies

Now we believe Nanotechnology is such a new technology that is knocking at the doors. It has wider applications compared to information tech-nology and is likely to touch the common man. It will be the central focus for many technologies to converge and open a large number of applications. Further, this technology will have a large domestic market potential leading to a robust economy.

If one sees the world nano publications scenario, we realize that India has a long way to go. Rapid advances both in terms of materials and devices are taking place globally. Almost, 300 novel materials and 50 devices with unique characteristics have been successfully developed around the world. Many of these inventions in materials and devices

that are being created today by nanotechnology were beyond human imaginations few years back. Further, this technology will have a large domestic market potential and hence would be a very robust and would be immune to the changes that would take place beyond our borders.

Next ten years will see nano technology playing the most dominant role in the global business environment and is expected to go beyond the billion dollar estimates and cross the figure of 1 trillion.

Globally, it is seen that large number of universities, academic institutions and companies have already starting making concrete efforts.

Indian Scenario

In India, modest beginnings have been made by some of the pioneers present in this room. Today, only a few institutions are contributing towards this pioneering research. A lot more needs to be done and we have to formulate an action plan by pooling all the available national resources. We are all meeting here so that we could evolve a national road map for enhancing our capabilities, identifying the gaps and steps required to make India a significant player in Nanoscience and Nanotechnology. Both Government and Private sectors have to join hands and form a ?Nano-Tech Enterprise?.

Integrated approach

For us to succeed in manufacturing of nano products and their deployment we need to tackle the issues of science and technology, product development and societal aspects in an integrated way. Judging by the past experience of the country in driving technology missions like in Aerospace, Agri-culture, Atomic energy and IT, I am confident that, if we take in a mission mode with a clear-cut vision, the country will reap the benefits of nanoscience and technology.

The Future Challenges

Reproducible mass production (kg levels) of identical high quality CNT.

Development of self-sustaining, self-replicating hybrids of CNT and silicon to perform augmentation and repair of DNA

Development of intelligent wearable systems using nano technology Solution to Cancer, Parkinson & AIDS diseases: through biosensors, devices and drug delivery systems

Realisation of molecular sized machines.Remote sensing through nano Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and satellites

Conclusion

You may be wondering what the Rashtrapati Bhavan has to do with Nanoscience and Nanotechnology. My interest is: fast national development, I am convinced that nano is the greatest building block for healthcare, structural material, in electronics, automation etc and will become the platform for new cutting edge technologies to grow for better living of the mankind.

I know many of you in your laboratory have been toiling hard to push the frontiers of nanoscience. Today if you all give a shape and roadmap to the nation's mission to be the very best in nanoscience and technologies, I am willing to give the needed thrust.