Nanotechnology Research – Networks and Initiatives

CeNTech was created as one of Germany's first centers for nanotechnology. Integrated into the densest network of universities in all over Europe in the German state of North Rhine-Westfalia (NRW), CeNTech provides the ideal environment to direct selected ideas and results of nanotechnological research into technical applications.

The mission of CeNS is to promote, coordinate, and bundle interdisciplinary research in the field of nanoscience. CeNS consolidates research activities at the nanometer scale from the areas of physics, biophysics, chemistry, biochemistry, and medicine. The network promotes the mutual understanding and collaboration between researchers from these different disciplines by joint seminars, workshops, and schools which are organized by CeNS.

The Center of Excellence in Nanosciences and Nanotechnology (CENN Nanocenter) is the response of Slovenian researchers and industry to meet the challenges of new technology. The CENN Nanocenter encompasses top-level facilities that enable researchers to achieve significant results.

A high-competence materials engineering cluster and R&D service provider.

Charged Particle Nanotech is an Integrated Project in the European Sixth Framework Programme (FP6), research priority NMP ('Nanotechnologies and Nanosciences, knowledge-based Multifunctional Materials, and new Production Processes and Devices'). CHARPAN is driven by industrial needs for new efficient production technologies for the fabrication of complex 2D and 3D surface structures necessary in numerous nanotechnology devices such as templates for nanoimprint applications.

A Marie Research Training Network which apporoaches the general goal of probing, understanding and using chiral molecular and supramolecular interactions at the nanoscale.

The initiative's expertise is to connect nanotechnology competences from different sectors, in particular science, politics and education. With a focus on small and medium-sized companies they primarily support networking among SMEs, but also include universities, colleges and research institutes. They support the efficient transfer of R&D&I results into marketable products and promote cooperation activities between the different stakeholders.

CMC Microsystems provides microsystems researchers with industry-calibre design resources, access to state-of-the-art prototyping technologies, tools for test and support services to accelerate Canadian competitiveness through nano- and microelectronics.

Co-Pilot aims to assist business in the execution of pilot production of nanomaterials. Co-Pilot is developing an open access infrastructure for companies interested in the production of high quality (multi-)functional nano-composites on a pilot scale.

Responsible for developing Australia's National Nanotechnology Strategy. Houses a National Research Flagship for Niche Manufacturing that includes nanomanufacturing.

(Site in German) The Center of Competence in Nano-Scale Analysis is a nationwide network created to link core competences in the fields of particle and surface analysis in order to develop improved mechanisms for transferring basic research into products, manufacturing processes and services.

The CRNCPM links several research groups engaged in the research of nanostructured and crosslinked polymeric materials in the Czech Republic.

The goal of the European CONTACT project is to establish a tailored supply chain of new CNT-filled composites with enhanced mechanical and electrical properties for applications including electrodes, structural materials and windblades.

An n independent, national platform pooling the scientific and regulatory knowledge and expertise available in Switzerland on the safe handling of synthetic nanomaterials - from production to use and disposal - and conveying it efficiently and in a generally understandable form to companies (start-ups, SMEs, and established firms).

CSIR is one of the leading scientific and technology research, development and implementation organisations in Africa. CSIR Materials Science and Manufacturing through its Science Initiatives and Industry Themes investigates and develops nanomaterials and nanostructures.

The materials investigated include metals, amorphous and crystalline alloys, semiconductors, oxide, nitride and carbide ceramics in the form of clusters, thin films, multilayers and bulk nanocrystalline materials. All synthesis techniques are based on vapor phase processes such as Molecular Beam Epitaxy (MBE), Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) and DC- and RF- Magnetron Sputtering for thin films and multilayers and Chemical Vapor Synthesis (CVS) and Inert Gas Condensation (IGC) for clusters and nanocrystalline materials.

The DEEPEN project is Europe?s leading research partnership for integrated understanding of the ethical challenges posed by emerging nanotechnologies in real world circumstances, and their implications for civil society, for governance, and for scientific practice.

The project Development of Lithography Technology for Nanoscale Structuring of Materials Using Laser Beam Interference (DELILA) focuses on researching and developing a new production technology for fabrication of 2D and 3D nano structures and devices. In particular, DELILA will enable low cost and large volume production of surface structures and patterns with nanometric resolution.

The "Design for Micro & Nano Manufacture (Patent-DfMM)" Network of Excellence aims to establish a new technical community that will address the underlying engineering science to ensure that problems affecting the manufacture and reliability of products based on MNT can be addressed before prototype and pre-production.

DINAMICS is a European FP6-funded project that aims to promote the uptake of nanotechnological approaches by developing an integrated costeffective nanobiological sensor for detection of bioterrorism and environmental assays. The prime deliverable is an exploitable lab-on-a-chip device for detection of pathogens in water using on-the-spot recognition and detection based on the nanotechnological assembly of unlabelled DNA.

The DIAMANT team has pioneered the discovery and development of diamond as a uniquely promising material system for solid-state molecular technologies: Diamond has exceptional optical and magnetic properties that are associated with dopant complexes - or 'solid-state molecules' - in the diamond lattice. The DIAMANT project will develop new technologies to enable placement of exactly one atom at a time into a selected location in the diamond lattice with nanometre precision.

The European Union's 7th Framework Programme's collaborative research project FP7-2009-IST-4-248613 DIAMOND - Diagnosis, Error Modelling and Correction for Reliable Systems Design aims at improving the productivity and reliability of semiconductor and electronic systems design in Europe by providing a systematic methodology and an integrated environment for the diagnosis and correction of errors.

The objective of the EU project 'Development of diamond intracellular nanoprobes for oncogen transformation dynamics monitoring in living cells' (DINAMO) is to develop the nanodiamond particle (NDP) non-invasive label-free nanotechnology sensing platform for real-time monitoring of 1) biomolecular processes inside (and outside) living cells, as modified by oncogenesis, 2) the kinetics of gene-assisted processes in the cells, in accordance with the Call objectives.

A European project for the devolopment of an integrated platform to assess the risk of nanoparticles.

DYNASYNC, short for 'Dynamics in Nano-scale Materials Studied with Synchrotron Radiation', is a Framework Six project. Seven laboratories from Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Hungary and Poland collaborate in an ambitious specific targeted research project to address size-dependent quantum phenomena on nano-scale both theoretically and experimentally.