Nanotechnology and Art

When first introduced to nanotechnology, I had trouble envisioning its overlap with art. The sheer fact than nanotechnology occurs on a scale far too small to be seen, let alone comprehended, by humans confused me but also made me want to learn more. Richard Feynman explored nanotechnology when he endeavored to write 25,000 pages of the encyclopedia Britannica on a pinhead. From this experience, he realized that the nanoscale pervades classical mechanics and is dominated by quantum (Gimzewski, pt.1) After becoming more familiar with the science, I learned that nanotechnology is about shifting our perception of reality from being visual, to being based more on sensing (Vesna).

Don Eigler's Design using STM

The discovery of a new form of carbon catapulted nanotechnology forward. This allotrope lead scientists towards nanotubes which are sheets of tetrahedrally bonded carbons that are stronger than steel. This monumental discovery had incredible implications in the nanoworld and motivated artists, inventors, and scientists to begin exploring it (Gimzewski, pt.2). Afterwards, the invention of the scanning tunneling microscope really opened up the world to nanotechnology. It feels the surface of a sample, maps the position of the atoms in real space, and gives the user the ability to manipulate them on a single atom basis. With this outstanding technology, Don Eigler was able to create visual designs in the nanoworld by rearranging atoms. This was the first real view of nanoart (Gimzewski, pt.2).  

Stained Glass

Quantum Dot in Cells

Although, structurally, the nanolevel must remain very simple, nanoparticles have a great influence on the color we see on a macroscale. Nanosized gold particles have very specific properties that were used for coloration in ancient Roman pottery. Stained glass also uses nanoparticles to make brilliant colors that cannot be formed with just regular pigmentation (Gimzewski, pt.3). Because nanoparticles have wavelike properties, as the size of the particle decreases, so does its wavelength, which alters the color we see. Quantum dots use this property and are used to tag different types of disease. They are so small, they can pass through the blood brain barrier to specifically target cells that have never been targeted before. The quantum dots produce brilliant images produced by these revolutionary nontoxic, multipurpose nanoparticles (Gimzewski, pt.4).

Blue Morpho Butterfly

We can see nanotechnology in the micro-christmastree-like structures of the blue morpho butterfly wing. The color of the structures should be black, but photons of light are manipulated on the nanoscale and reflect a brilliant blue pigment (Gimzewski, pt.5). This discovery challenged and motivated scientists to continue to explore the nano world.

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