Nanotechnology for Defense Conference: Celebrating Ten Years, Call for Abstracts, and Some History
This year is the ten year anniversary for a leading nanotechnology conference, the Nanotechnology for Defense Conference (NT4D). The call for abstracts indicates a February 18, 2012 initial deadline. The conference will be held August 6-10 in Summerlin, Nevada.
Defense is one of the fundamental and perhaps the most stable pillar for nanotechnology commercialization, along with other pillars such as bio nanotechnology and energy. The history of the Department of Defense’s (DoD) interest in nanotechnology is noted in the Foreward of Ratner and Ratner’s book, Nanotechnology and Homeland Security, 2004 (written by James Murday, Office of Naval Research). The DoD interest in nanotechnology can be “clearly identified as early as the late 1970′s when its Ultrasubmicron Electronics Research (USER) program.” The DoD had a long history for research in the miniaturization of electronics. Early efforts focused on 2 nm structures and led to superlattice technologies. Programs in the 1980′s sought to exploit new tools like STM and AFM. In the 1990′s, DARPA initiated an ULTRA program for ultra fast, ultra dense electronics program. In addition, the Office of Naval Research began a program in nanostructured coatings. By 1997, the importance of nanotechnology to the DOD led to its designation as a “strategic research area.” When the NNI was created in 2001, the DoD wan an “enthusiastic supporter.”
Note: Murday also has an article in J. Nanoparticle Research, 1, 501-505, 1999 which outlines the history of the DoD and nanotech, and the interests at DoD in 1999. Focus is on Air Force, Army, Navy, and DARPA. Information technology, nanomaterials, and nanobiotechnology are discussed. One cannot do well with current policy decisions without understand some of the history. Important policy decisions need to be made now in commercialization of nanotechnology.
The current call for abstracts at the 2012 NT4D Conference focus on (1) Nanotechnology Success Stories, (2) Nanotechnology for Military Coatings Applications, (3) Nanotechnology for Chem-Bio Defense and Battlefield Casualty Care Medical Applications, (4) Nanomaterials Response to Extreme Stimuli, and (5) Nanoelectronics. However, the scope is broad as topics in the following areas will be considered:
Additional topics that will be considered include:
- Nano-Manufacturing
- NanoTech for Elimination & Maintenance
- Nano-Rheology
- EM Effects on Nanomaterials
- Nanograined Metals
- Logistics of Nanotechnology Development
- Nanomaterials for Energetics
- Synergistic Experimentation & Computational Modeling
- Nanoscale Modeling and Simulation
- Nanodevices
- Nanosystems
- Nano-Biotechnology
- Nanotechnology in Special Ops
- Beyond CMOS
- Sustainable Energy
- Graphene
- Nanophotonics/MetaMaterials
- Laser Processing for Materials and Biological Systems
- Nanomaterials/Nanoceramics/Nanopowders for High-Energy Optics