The most recent high profile nanotech development was announced
earlier this week by IBM. It has developed a prototype chip that
copes with a data storage density of one terabyte per square inch -
20 times higher than the densest magnetic storage currently
available. In practical terms, this equates to storing 25 million
pages of data on a surface the size of a postage stamp, or 15
gigabytes of data on a wristwatch-sized device.
Apart from nanotech’s potential for IT, the Commission sees a
future in which “machines not bigger than a molecule will one day
surf our blood stream, search and destroy infected tissues, and
heal our wounds.” Other potential applications are in the
automotive, cosmetics, chemicals, packaging, energy and robotic
industries.
Today, EU Research Commissioner Philippe Busquin will chair an
information day on nanotech new frontiers in Grenoble, France.
Nanotech research is still in its start-up phase, and the
Commission reasons that it will be far more effective if
co-ordinated and supported at EU level. The Commission will
therefore allocate its investment to nanotech research within a
framework programme.
Commissioner Busquin said:
"Enterprises cannot do everything on their
own. The challenge is so big that it has to be faced by solid
public-private partnerships. Public authorities also have to
monitor the ethics and social aspects of nanotechnology. The US
government is pouring $600 to $700 million per year into this
sector. The Commission will respond by allocating more than € 700
million to nanotechnology research over four years within the
forthcoming 6th Research Framework Programme (2003-2006). With
private sector contributions this amount should rise to € 1
billion."
