document title / titre du document TRP W ORK PLAN ... - emits - ESA

TRP Work Plan 2005-2007
Description of Activities
TEC-SB/7935/dc
12/Feb/09
TRP Reference:
Title:
T608-38QC
Survey of available micro and nanotechnology
Nanotechnology is an advanced technology that has received a lot of attention for its ability to make use of the unique
properties of nanosized materials. Nanotechnology is capable of manipulating and controlling material structures at the nano
level (a nanometer is equal to one millionth of a millimeter) and offering unprecedented functions and excellent material
properties. Nanotechnology consists of the “top-down approach” and the “bottom-up approach.” In the former approach, the
sophistication of fine processing technologies, such as semiconductor manufacturing, can lead to the processing of nanosized
fine structures. In the bottom-up approach, self-organization properties inherent in materials can be utilized to assemble
nanosized fine structures from the atomic or molecular levels. Nanotechnology, including nanostructured material metrology to
accurately determine physical properties at the nanolevel, is considered a strategic technological area that goes beyond
conventional technologies, potentially leading to a paradigm shift in new industrial technologies.
Nanotechnology is regarded world-wide as one of the key technologies of the 21st century. Nanotechnological products and
processes hold an enormous economic potential for the markets of the future. The production of ever smaller, faster and more
efficient products with acceptable price-to-performance ratio has become for many industrial branches an increasingly
important success factor in the international competition. The technological competence in nanotechnology will be a
compelling condition to compete successfully with better procedures and products on high technology markets in the future.
Due to its interdisciplinary cross-section character, nanotechnology will affect broad application fields within the ranges of
chemistry/materials, medicine/life sciences, electonics/information technology, environmental and energy engineering,
automotive manufacturing as well as optics/analytics and precision engineering in various ways. The convergence of different
fields like microelectronics, chemistry, physics, and biology will permit to create the emerging nanoscale functions in coming
years.
The future European space missions should get benefit of this fantastic 21st century Nanotechnology revolution. In particular
the future evolutions of the coupling of micro and nano world interdisciplinary applications pushes towards the possibility of
development of “Smart Systems”.
The CTB MNT Working Group has proposed to carry out a technology survey on Nanotechnology. The so established position
paper will be a strategic document for the development of Nanotechnologies for space sector, including the technological and
industrial perspective, the state of the art outside and inside the space sector, the impacted industrials sectors, the potential
contribution of nanotechnologies, the axes of collaboration to favour development of nanotechnologies, i.e. technological key
issues and competence centers well positioned in the field of interest, a “Nanotechnology Roadmap”.
Major tasks will include: 1.Survey of Nano technologies on : Structural materials, Sensors, Nanoelectronics and Computing; 2.
Identification of potential applications for space sector: transportation vehicles, space crafts, pay loads, probes, etc.; 3.
Elaboration of preliminary requirements ; 4. Identification of potential manufacturers for Nano technologies; 5. Establishment
of First “Nanotechnology Roadmap for European space applications”.
The roadmap should in particularfocus on short/mid/long term issues. At short mid term (