All Things Great . . . Are Small
For Northeastern's nanotech researchers, working across a raft of disciplines, big innovations spring from teensy-tiny packages

By Karen Feldscher

It is, says political science professor Christopher Bosso, the study of things that are "freakingly small."

Nontechies everywhere use similarly inexact yet awed language when talking about the strange new realm of nanotechnology, which focuses on particles that are so minute, so beyond the realm of the senses, that the work itself can be tough to comprehend.

Yet this young field is science's next big thing. Successfully unlocking the mysteries of smaller-than-small building blocks could revolutionize everything from fighting cancer, to miniaturizing computers, to blocking terrorism.

No surprise, then, that there's an upsurge of nanotech study on Huntington Avenue, as a cadre of researchers investigate the new technology's potential for helping us and—maybe—harming us.

For instance, Northeastern researchers are figuring out how to mass-produce nanostructures at a reasonable cost. Create body-friendly nanoparticles that can detect and destroy disease. Use nanomaterials to make diminutive, very lightweight power sources. Get graduate, undergraduate, and K-12 students acclimated to the nano world.

Political scientists like Bosso have a dog in the hunt, too. Dealing with nanotechnology's ramifications will be a massive job for government, which may or may not be up to the task. In the nano age, patent applications could soar. Privacy concerns could deepen. The technology could have unintended, possibly harmful health and environmental side effects.

Overall, the university has more than forty researchers working on nanotech efforts in such disciplines as engineering, pharmaceutical sciences, and chemistry. The work involves partners from outside the university—hospitals, companies, and government labs.

In particular, the university has focused attention on four key areas—nanomanufacturing, nanomedicine, nanomaterials, and the societal implications of nanotechnology. And, in tried-and-true Northeastern fashion, the research tends to address very practical problems.

"We have a leadership position in nanotechnology, absolutely," says Srinivas Sridhar, vice provost for research and an expert in both nanomedicine and nanomaterials. He says the university already has about $33 million in nanotech grants from federal and industry sources.

With its well-mapped goals and its resources, Sridhar says, Northeastern in the small-tech age "is in extraordinary shape."

Inside the nano universe
A detailed definition of nanotechnology ("nano" is derived from the Greek word for "dwarf") appears on the website of the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI), a federal research and development program that coordinates government efforts in nanoscale science, engineering, and technology.

Nanotechnology, the website explains, is "the understanding and control of matter at dimensions of roughly 1 to 100 nanometers, where unique phenomena enable novel applications."

For a sense of scale, consider that one nanometer equals one-billionth of a meter, and that ten nanometers is close to 10,000 times smaller than a human hair. Measurements of atoms or molecules are made in nanometers. Nanotechnologists study particles so small they can be seen only through an electron microscope.

At the nano level, matter has different physical, chemical, and biological properties than it does at an atomic or molecular scale. Scientists are trying to harness these properties to create improved materials, devices, and systems. The work is twofold, really: understanding how the nanoscale universe works, then using that knowledge to make new and powerful processes and products.

According to the NNI, materials created through nanotechnology are already in use in a host of products, like car bumpers, sunscreens, tennis rackets, and ink. Today, most computer hard drives contain nano-thin layers of magnetic materials that increase their storage capacity. Other nanomaterials are being used in landmine detectors and compasses.

In the future? According to a 2003 NNI report on nanotechnology's societal implications, by the year 2013 "nanotechnology could be used in nearly half of all new products, from hand-held computer devices to cancer and other disease treatments; renewable energy sources; lightweight multifunctional components in cars and airplanes; agents for environmental remediation; and water filters that remove viruses, contaminants, and salt for entire cities."

The National Science Foundation (NSF) estimates about $1 trillion worth of nanotechnology-enabled products will be on the market by 2015.

Building the better nanoproduct
Producing anything at the nanoscale is a challenge, given the size.

Nevertheless, Ahmed Busnaina, the William Lincoln Smith Professor of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, not only wants to figure out how to mass-produce nanoparticles, he wants to ensure it can be done at a reasonable cost.

Busnaina directs the Center for High-Rate Nanomanufacturing, a research effort funded two years ago by a $12.4 million NSF grant. The center is a Northeastern-led partnership that includes UMass-Lowell and the University of New Hampshire, as well as collaborations with a number of companies. It's one of only four such centers in the United States.

With his colleagues, Busnaina is perfecting a chemical process called guided self-assembly, which uses magnetics to automatically direct nanoparticles into precise positions, as a method of creating nanostructures.

Busnaina's vision of nanotech applications is decidedly futuristic. He talks about laptops the size of business cards, eyeglass lenses that double as computer screens ("You would just have to watch out when you're walking down the street," he laughs), and super-tiny biosensors that could be injected into or implanted in our bodies.

Currently, his group is also working on developing manufacturing processes for two kinds of injectable or implantable biosensors: one that would detect many types of cancers, and one that would deliver drugs directly to tumors. Someday, he says, he hopes to combine both functions in a single nanochip.

In addition, he's working on a lab-based biosensor that would be very accurate, thanks to the close, orderly placement of disease-detecting antibodies on its surface, and very inexpensive to produce and use.

Such an affordable biosensor, says Busnaina, would be enormously helpful in developing countries, where it could, for example, help to reduce the death rate from cervical cancer, which is difficult to treat when detected late.

To improve computer performance, Busnaina's group is working on a memory device made of carbon nanotubes, cylindrical molecules of carbon less than ten nanometers wide. Nanotechnology is critical for next-generation memory devices, says Busnaina, because trying to make current semiconductor technology any smaller would generate too much heat.

A nano memory device would have all sorts of benefits, Busnaina says. In addition to being extremely small, it would be very fast and would require very little power to run. It would also be resistant to heat, cold, magnetic fields, and vibrations.

Recently, the Center for High-Rate Nanomanufacturing's research efforts got a boost from Roger Grace, E'66, ME'69, president of the San Francisco-based Roger Grace Associates, a marketing consulting firm that specializes in high-tech ventures. Grace has funded a fellowship that will allow graduate students to work at the center.

The Grace fellowship "will provide us with the means and the opportunity to hire the brightest and most highly motivated students to work in nanotechnology and nanomanufacturing at Northeastern," says Busnaina.

Bloodstream medics
To unleash nanotechnology in the fight against cancer, cardiovascular disease, and infectious diseases, Northeastern has established a nanomedicine consortium led by Sridhar; Vladimir Torchilin, professor and chair of pharmaceutical sciences; and Mansoor Amiji, professor of pharmaceutical sciences.

The university has roughly $15 million in grants related to nanomedicine, says Sridhar. Chief among them is a $3.3 million grant from the National Cancer Institute for a nanomedicine doctoral program that stresses interdisciplinary research in such areas as nanostructured materials, sensors, and diagnostic systems, and drug and gene targeting and delivery.

This so-called IGERT (Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship) grant combines coursework with real-world experience in biotechnology, pharmaceutical, and medical-device companies, and research hospitals. It places a strong emphasis on the involvement of women and minorities as well as outreach to public school teachers and students.

Nanomedicine's two-goal holy grail, says Sridhar—who is the IGERT grant's principal investigator—is detecting cancer as early as possible and developing less-toxic treatment methods. "You want to catch cancer not at a billion cells, at which point it has nearly metastacized, but at a hundred cells," he explains.

Specially engineered nanoparticles could also be used to detect and treat cardiovascular and infectious diseases.

Northeastern's nanomedicine researchers are experimenting with different types of nanoparticles. Sridhar works on magnetic nanoparticles. Amiji works on polymeric nanoparticles. Torchilin makes liposomes and micelles, tiny bubbles that can transport either water- or oil-soluble drugs.

"In the area of disease diagnosis and drug delivery, the focus is on getting formulations you can administer to people. That's key," says Sridhar. "The materials are all biocompatible, very carefully selected."

Torchilin's goal is to create drug-filled nanoparticles that recognize and latch on to diseased cells, then release their contents. Amiji is also trying to produce nanoparticles that identify and adhere only to diseased tissue.

Magnetic nanoparticles are particularly helpful in finding and tracking disease. These particles, designed to attach to particular tissue, can be viewed under magnetic resonance imaging or fluorescent light, exposing pathologies that might not have been detectable through other imaging techniques.

Bionanotechnology is another medical focus at Northeastern. Led by mechanical and industrial engineering professor Constantinos Mavroidis, a ultidisciplinary team from Northeastern, Rutgers University, Massachusetts General Hospital, Shriners Hospitals for Children, and the University of Connecticut is studying the development of protein-based nanomotors and nanorobots.

Such devices, combining biological and man-made materials, may one day travel through the human body diagnosing and treating diseases.

The stuff of dreams
A number of Northeastern researchers make and study nanomaterials, a broad category that encompasses just about any material that contains engineered nanoparticles.

Scientists and manufacturers get excited about nanomaterials because these substances are often very hard and strong, very pliant at high temperatures, and highly resistant to wear and corrosion.

In 2002, the university created an institute that emphasizes research in electronic and photonic nanostructures for, for instance, optical and imaging systems. Another center, directed by Vincent Harris, the William Lincoln Smith Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, looks to create magnetic nanostructures for communication devices.

Chemistry professor Sanjeev Mukerjee is developing nanomaterials for batteries, supercapacitors that can produce power for extended periods without recharging, and small, lightweight fuel cells that convert hydrogen and oxygen into electricity and heat.

Physics professor Arun Bansil is working on a better theoretical understanding of nanomaterials' electronic structure.

And several faculty members—Don Heiman and Clive Perry of physics, and Kate Ziemer of chemical engineering—are studying something called spintronics. Instead of using an electron's charge, the idea is to use an electron's "spin"—which can be either "up" or "down"—to develop high-performance portable electronic devices that require relatively little power to operate.

Given the hunger for miniaturization in the microelectronics field, tech heads and ordinary consumers alike are avidly awaiting the results of spintronics research.

What you can't see
Amid the general atmosphere of anticipation around nanotech's fruits, many policymakers and researchers have some serious concerns about how nanotechnology will affect society.

Could nanomaterials harm the human body or the environment? Will the growth of nanotechnology make the rich richer and the poor poorer? Are U.S. regulatory agencies equipped to deal with an onslaught of nanotech-related issues?

The 2003 NNI report on societal implications sets a high goal for public officials, affirming that, "as nanotechnologies reach the commercial marketplace, the public should be confident that the government is taking appropriate steps to safeguard the environment and human health, while also enabling new technologies and new industries to flourish."

Troubling questions about possible outcomes are raised in the report. For instance, will nanoscience widen the gap between the haves and the have-nots? Assume for a moment that implanting a nanochip in your brain could radically boost your memory, or that a diet of specially designed disease-killing foods meant you would never come down with some illnesses. What would happen if you could afford such enhancements but your neighbor could not?

Or what if sensors, microprocessors, and storage devices were embedded in materials, clothing, or structures—what kind of privacy issues would follow? What if bionanodevices could be used to change DNA, our fundamental human blueprint?

Here, too, Northeastern is on the cutting edge. To assess nanotech's societal, environmental, economic, regulatory, and ethical dimensions, the university formed a special research group in 2004. In September, to expand on this group's work, the National Science Foundation gave $1.4 million to fund a study led by Chris Bosso.

"Our focus is to assess the capacity of government to handle the new technologies," says Bosso. "At minimum, citizens expect government to protect them from the unintended consequences of technology."

To demonstrate why nanotechnology's effects have to be examined, Bosso cites the history of DDT. In the 1940s and 1950s, when DDT was first used to quell malaria, typhus, and other insect-borne human diseases, it was hailed as a miracle pesticide. Just a few decades later, after biologist Rachel Carson's book Silent Spring detailed how DDT harmed fish and bird populations and caused cancer in humans, many countries banned the substance.

There is already evidence that some nanomaterials are harmful—causing brain and liver damage in fish, for instance—but the full extent of the possible health and environmental effects is not yet known. The potential for health risk is immense, of course. It would be all too easy for nano-sized materials to be inhaled deep into lung tissue, or be borne by the bloodstream or the nervous system throughout the body.

"Can we breathe in carbon nanotubes? Can we put nanomaterials down the drain? What do we do with nanowaste?" says Bosso, listing just a few questions that plague officials. "There is some concern that technology is roaring ahead, and that our ability to understand the health, environmental, and safety impacts of nanotechnology is way behind. In some respects, that's always been the case with new technology."

Northeastern's NSF grant, Bosso believes, is a signal that government is at least trying to address the problem early.

He and co-investigators William Kay, of political science, and Jacqueline Isaacs, of mechanical and industrial engineering, will examine, among other things, what government regulation of nanotechnology should involve and how it might protect people without blocking innovation.

They will also determine whether such groups as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Patent and Trademark Office have the personnel and expertise to deal with the coming explosion of nanotech questions and tasks.

Riding the wave
Brent Segal, chief operating officer of Nantero, a company that's developing next-generation semiconductor devices using carbon nanotubes, is one of the Center for High-Rate Nanomanufacturing's industrial partners as well as the director of the center's industrial advisory board.

Northeastern is well-situated to do good work in the nanotech boom, he says: "It's got a nice lab, a steady stream of good students, and lots of opportunities for working together [with research partners]."

Throughout the twenty-first century, the growth possibilities for nanotechnology's applications seem to be limitless, Segal adds. Though particles have always existed at the nanoscale, scientists had no way to see them—much less manipulate them—before the advent of high-tech imaging equipment. Now that scientists can view nanoparticles through sophisticated microscopes, they are quickly figuring out ways to use them.

"This is a big deal," Segal says. "Nanotechnology is going to be with us pretty much forever."

And as the known world gets more and more minuscule, the university is ready to emerge as a major small-tech player. "Northeastern," says provost Ahmed Abdelal, "aims to be at the forefront of nanotechnology research."

Karen Feldscher is a senior writer.

Large Scale Recognition

Ahmed Busnaina, the William Lincoln Smith Professor of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering and director of the Center for High-Rate Nanomanufacturing, is certainly one of Northeastern's small-tech luminaries.

Now he's received star billing on the international scene, too.

This summer, Busnaina was named one of the "Nano 50" by Nanotech Briefs, a digital magazine created by the publishers of NASA Tech Briefs. The annual designation recognizes the top fifty technologies, products, and innovators that have had, or are expected to have, an impact on the field of nanotechnology.

Other innovators on the 2006 list are affiliated with such places as Rice University, UCLA, Penn State, Lucent Technologies, IBM, and the Naval Research Laboratory.

Busnaina, who also directs the university's Center for Microcontamination Control, has already been internationally recognized for his work on how to mitigate and remove nano- and microscale defects in semiconductor fabrication.

A member of the editorial advisory board for Semiconductor International magazine, a journal titled Particulate Science and Technology, and the Journal of Environmental Sciences, Busnaina is a fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and a Fulbright Senior Scholar.

The busy researcher has authored more than three hundred papers for journals, proceedings, and conferences, along with a soon-to-be-published nanomanufacturing handbook. He has been invited to more than a hundred seminars worldwide and has served as a consultant to some of the world's top ompanies, including IBM, Motorola, General Electric, General Motors, DuPont, and Xerox.

Busnaina says he's honored to be named to the Nano 50 list. "I believe," he says, "that the work that we are doing at Northeastern is important in bridging the gap between nanoscale science research and the creation of commercial products," as well as in addressing "the societal impacts of these new technologies."

Did you know?
Interesting facts about nanotechnology and Northeastern

A nanometer is one-billionth of a meter. A human hair is about 70,000 nanometers in diameter.

By 2013, nanotechnology "could be used in nearly half of all new products,?Äù according to the National Nanotechnology Initiative.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) predicts that the annual nanotech market will reach $1 trillion by 2015.

Northeastern is home to one of only eleven NSF-funded nanotech research centers in the country.

The George J. Kostas Nanoscale Technology and Manufacturing Center at Northeastern has 5,000 square feet of cleanroom space—one of the largest labs of its kind in the region.

To date, Northeastern has received $33 million in external funding for nanotechnology research.

More than forty Northeastern faculty in physics, chemistry, engineering, biology, pharmaceutical sciences, computer science, and the social sciences are conducting nanotechnology research.

Northeastern's nanotech research focuses on four areas: nanomanufacturing; nanomedicine and bionanotechnology; nanomaterials; and society, ethics, and nanotechnology.

Northeastern has more than fifty industrial collaborators and partners, including corporations, hospitals, government agencies, and universities.

Engineering professor Ahmed Busnaina was named to the "Nano 50?Äù by Nanotech Briefs (a magazine created by the publishers of NASA Tech Briefs) as one of the nation's leading nanotech innovators.

An interdisciplinary team of researchers led by political science professor Christopher Bosso received a $1.4 million NSF grant to study the public-interest implications of the nanotechnology revolution.

Nanotechnology research at Northeastern has the potential to lead to new inventions, including:

• tumor-targeted therapies that wipeout cancer cells without side effects
• drugs and vaccines for AIDS and other infectious diseases
• plaque-busting nanoparticles that clear clogged arteries
• TV and computer monitors as thin and flexible as a few sheets of paper
• laptop computers the size of business cards
• eyeglass lenses that double as computer screens
• bionano robots and biosensors that detect and treat disease in the human body
• batteries and supercapacitors that produce power for extended periods
• small fuel cells that convert hydrogen and oxygen into electricity and heat

  Iliustrations by Mark Steele