Nanosystems

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• "The most talked about technical book of the year." Bob Schwbach, United Press International.
• "With this book, Drexler has established the field of molecular nanotechnology. The detailed analyses show quantum chemists and synthetic chemists how to build upon their knowledge of bonds and molecules to develop the manufacturing systems of nanotechnlogy, and show physicists and engineers how to scale down their concepts of macroscopic systems to the level of molecules." William A. Goddard III, Professor of Chemistry and Applied Physics, Director Materials and Molecular Simulation Center, California Institute of Technology.
• "Devices enormously smaller than before will remodel engineering, chemistry, medicine, and computer technology. How can we understand machines that are so small? Nanosystems covers it all: power and strength, friction and wear, thermal noise and quantum uncertainty. This is the book for starting the next century of engineering." Marvin Minsky, Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Toshiba Professor of Media Arts and Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
• "What the computer revolution did for manipulating data, the nanotechnology revolution will do for manipulating matter, juggling atoms like bits. This multidisciplinary synthesis opens the door to the new field of molecular manufacturing." Ralph C. Merkle, Member of Research Staff, Computational Nanotechnology Project, Xerox Palo Alto Research Center.
• "This work provides the scientific and technological foundations for the emerging field of molecular systems engineering... It is essential for anyone contemplating research in this area...a milestone in the develpment of the technologies that will underpin the final industrial revolution." John Walker, Cofounder of Autodesk, Inc.
• "It is a scholarly examination of how this technology works, a reference book for the crafters of the future." Byte.
• "Demonstrates not only that nanotechnology is achievable, but shows how it will happen....takes readers from the fundamental physical principles to advanced designs for molecular components and systems." Japan Times.
• Best Computer Science Book of 1992, Association of American Publishers.
• Over 10,000 copies in print.

The goal of Drexler's investigations is "building complex structures with atom-by-atom control", which is also the ultimate goal of synthetic chemistry. Drexler's approach is distinguished from conventional chemistry in that complex structures are to be made by using programmable "nanoscale mechanical systems to guide the placement of reactive molecules" to about 0.1-nm precision. The objective of the book is to present a theoretical foundation for "molecular manufacturing", which Drexler also calls "molecular nanotechnology". The objective is not to present a detailed review of recent experimental progress in the many disciplines that converge on what is being increasingly termed "nanotechnology". ....

Several alternative pathways from current technology to molecular manufacturing are considered, at least briefly, guiding chemists and others toward a plethora of interesting problems to pursue.

In this volume, Drexler presents the technical analysis of molecular machinery and manufacturing....It will probably see use in graduate studies and as a reference work for many years.

Some quotes from the preface of Nanosystems:

Manufactured products are made from atoms, and their properties depend on how those atoms are arranged. This volume summarizes 15 years of research in molecular manufacturing, the use of nanoscale mechanical systems to guide the placement of reactive molecules, building complex structures with atom-by-atom control. This degree of control is a natural goal for technology: Microtechnology strives to build smaller devices; materials science strives to make more useful solids; chemistry strives to synthesize more complex molecules; manufacturing strives to make better products. Each of these fields requires precise, molecular control of complex structures to reach its natural limit, a goal that has been termed molecular nanotechnology.

It has become clear that this degree of control can be achieved. The present volume assembles the conceptual and analytical tools needed to understand molecular machinery and manufacturing, presents an analysis of their core capabilities and explores how present laboratory techniques can be extended, stage by stage, to implement molecular manufacturing systems.

From the table of contents:

1. Introduction and Overview

• 1.1 Why molecular manufacturing?
• 1.2 What is molecular manufacturing?
• 1.3 Comparisons
• 1.4 The approach in this volume
• 1.5 Objectives of following chapters

Part I

2. Classical Magnitudes and Scaling Laws

• 2.1 Overview
• 2.2 Approximation and classical continuum models
• 2.3 Scaling of classical mechanical systems
• 2.4 Scaling of electromagnetic systems
• 2.5 Scaling of classical thermal systems
• 2.6 Beyond classical continuum models
• 2.7 Conclusions

3. Potential Energy Surfaces

• 3.1 Overview
• 3.2 Quantum theory and approximations
• 3.3 Molecular Mechanics
• 3.4 Potentials for chemical reactions
• 3.5 Continuum representations of surfaces
• 3.6 Conclusions
• 3.7 Further readings

4. Molecular Dynamics

• 4.1 Overview
• 4.2 Nonstatistical mechanics
• 4.3 Statistical mechanics
• 4.4 PES revisited: accuracy requirements
• 4.5 Conclusions
• 4.6 Further Reading

5. Positional Uncertainty

• 5.1 Overview
• 5.2 Positional uncertainty in engineering
• 5.3 Thermally excited harmonic oscillators
• 5.4 Elastic extension of thermally excited rods
• 5.5 Elastic bending of thermally excited rods
• 5.6 Piston displacement in a gas-filled cylinder
• 5.7 Longitudinal variance from transverse deformation
• 5.8 Elasticity, entropy, and vibrational modes
• 5.9 Conclusions

6. Transistions, Errors, and Damage

• 6.1 Overview
• 6.2 Transitions between potential wells
• 6.3 Placement errors
• 6.4 Thermomechanical damage
• 6.5 Photochemical damage
• 6.6 Radiation damage
• 6.7 Component and system lifetimes
• 6.8 Conclusions

7. Energy Dissipation

• 7.1 Overview
• 7.2 Radiation from forced oscillations
• 7.3 Phonons and phonon scattering
• 7.4 Thermoelastic damping and phonon viscosity
• 7.5 Compression of potential wells
• 7.6 Transitions among time-dependent wells
• 7.7 Conclusions

8. Mechanosynthesis

• 8.1 Overview
• 8.2 Perspectives on solution-phase organic synthesis
• 8.3 Solution-phase synthesis and mechanosynthesis
• 8.4 Reactive species
• 8.5 Forcible mechanochemical processes
• 8.6 Mechanosynthesis of diamondoid structures
• 8.7 Conclusions

Part II

9. Nanoscale Structural Components

• 9.1 Overview
• 9.2 Components in context
• 9.3 Materials and models for nanoscale components
• 9.4 Surface effects on component properties
• 9.5 Shape control in irregular structures
• 9.6 Components of high rotational symmetry
• 9.7 Adhesive interfaces
• 9.8 Conclusions

10. Mobile Interfaces and Moving Parts

• 10.1 Overview
• 10.2 Spatial Fourier transforms of nonbonded potentials
• 10.3 Sliding of irregular objects over regular surfaces
• 10.4 Symmetrical sleeve bearings
• 10.5 Further applications of sliding-interface bearings
• 10.6 Atomic-axle bearings
• 10.7 Gears, rollers, belts, and cams
• 10.8 Barriers in extended systems
• 10.9 Dampers, detents, clutches, and ratchets
• 10.10 Perspective: nanomachines and macromachines
• 10.11 Bounded continuum models revisited
• 10.12 Conclusions

11. Intermediate Subsystems

• 11.1 Overview
• 11.2 Mechanical measurment devices
• 11.3 Stiff, high gear-ratio mechanisms
• 11.4 Fluids, seals, and pumps
• 11.5 Convective cooling systems
• 11.6 Electromechanical devices
• 11.7 DC motors and generators
• 11.8 Conclusions

12. Nanomechanical Computational Systems

• 12.1 Overview
• 12.2 Digital signal transmission with mechanical rods
• 12.3 Gates and logic rods
• 12.4 Registers
• 12.5 Combinational logic and finite-state machines
• 12.6 Survey of other devices and subsystems
• 12.7 CPU-scale systems: clocking and power supply
• 12.8 Cooling and computational capacity
• 12.9 Conclusion

13. Molecular Sorting, Processing, and Assembly

• 13.1 Overview
• 13.2 Sorting and ordering molecules
• 13.3 Transformation and assembly with molecular mills
• 13.4 Assembly operations using molecular manipulators
• 13.5 Conclusions

14. Molecular Manufacturing Systems

• 14.1 Overview
• 14.2 Assembly operations at intermediate scales
• 14.3 Architectural issues
• 14.4 An examplar manufacturing-system architecture
• 14.5 Comparisons to conventional manufacturing
• 14.6 Design and complexity
• 14.7 Conclusions

Part III

15. Macromolecular Engineering

• 15.1 Overview
• 15.2 Macromolecular objects via biotechnology
• 15.3 Macromolecular objects via solution synthesis
• 15.4 Macromolecular objects via mechanosynthesis
• 15.5 Conclusions

16. Paths to Molecular Manufacturing

• 16.1 Overview
• 16.2 Backward chaining to identify strategies
• 16.3 Smaller, simpler systems (stages 3-4)
• 16.4 Softer, smaller, solution-phase systems (stages 2-3)
• 16.5 Development time: some considerations
• 16.6 Conclusions

Appendix A. Methodological Issues in Theoretical and Applied Science

• A.1 The role of theoretical applied science
• A.2 Basic issues
• A.3 Science, engineering, and theoretical applied science
• A.4 Issues in theoretical applied science
• A.5 A sketch of some epistemological issues
• A.6 Theoretical applied science as intellectual scaffolding
• A.7 Conclusions

Appendix B. Related Research

• B.1 Overview
• B.2 How related fields have been divided
• B.3 Mechanical engineering and microtechnology
• B.4 Chemistry
• B.5 Molecular biology
• B.6 Protein engineering
• B.7 Proximal probe technologies
• B.8 Feynman's 1959 talk
• B.9 Conclusions

Afterword

Symbols, Units, and Constants

Glossary

References

Index

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