Nanotechnology Committee Co-Chairs Chuck Mullett and Dr. Anthony F. Laviano Kicking off the Nanotechnology Forum at the PSMA Annual Meeting

The Nanotechnology Committee during the past five years has held monthly meetings. As a result, the dedication of all committee members has brought about significant results for the benefit of PSMA members.

In 2008, in cooperation with J. Michael Rice, President of Aerolearn, Nano 100 was brought on-line as a free e-tutorial for PSMA members. Nano 100 focused on nanotechnology root notions to provide a basic appreciation and understanding of concepts and current applications.

In 2009, the committee activities included expanding and adding resources to the Nanotechnology Technical Forum and proposing a Plenary Presentation and organizing a six presentation program for a Special Industry Presentation session at APEC 2010. The APEC 2009 Committee approved the Special Presentation Session and invited Dr. Laviano to be a Plenary Speaker to present Nanotechnology the Reality and the Promise at the conference. This officially introduced nanotechnology into the APEC 2010 program and the PSMA Nanotechnology Initiative went public.

Dr. Laviano giving the APEC 2010 Plenary Presentation on Nanotechnology

The PSMA Nanotechnology Committee continued with its commitment to APEC in 2011 and 2012. The committee organized an Industry Sessions each year that featured industry and research experts who presented the latest advancements in nanotechnology. For the first time the APEC 2011 Call for Papers for included a request for submissions of abstracts on nanotechnology topics.

In 2011 the committee continued to focus on e-learning and Nano 100 - Introduction to Nanotechnology was updated and plans were formulated to launch Nano 200. By early 2012, Nano 200-Nanotechnology Science, Research and Industry e-learning tutorial was placed on-line for PSMA members. The content of Nano 200 raised the learning bar by including succinct nanotechnology aspects of the physical sciences, chemistry, material science and quantum physics.  In addition, safety, ethical and societal issues concerns were addressed, along with information on current nanotechnology research and a listing of companies that have moved nanotechnology into the market place.  Both Nano 100 and Nano 200 e-learning tutorial courses offer a “Certificate of Completion” for three Continuing Education Credits after successful completion.

The committee has very ambitious plans for APEC 2013. The APEC 2013 Call for Papers again includes a request for Abstracts and the committee is hoping for enough accepted papers to hold a Technical Session on nanotechnology topics. The committee is also organizing another Industry Presentation Session featuring leading experts from industry and academia speaking on the latest advances in nanotechnology. In addition, the committee will propose an education seminar on nanotechnology and proposing a Plenary Speaker to discuss some recent commercial advances in the application of nanotechnology. Finally, the committee is planning another PSMA Special Project to develop Nano 300, an on-line nanotechnology college level module.

Since its founding five years ago, the PSMA Nanotechnology Committee has held monthly meetings via teleconference and an annual committee meeting during APEC. As a result of the dedication of the committee members, the Nanotechnology Committee has brought about significant results that have benefited the PSMA membership. We encourage you to visit the PSMA Nanotechnology Forum - www.psma.com/technical-forums/nanotechnology - and take advantage of the resources which are available to all members. If you have not done so, and are from a PSMA member company, take the Nano 100 and Nano 200 e- tutorials.  They will provide an insight into the nano scale and will enrich your power design options. If you are excited about nanotechnology and wish to get involved, you are invited to join the Nanotechnology Committee.

Provided by Dr. Anthony F. Laviano, Founder of NANOWorld® and Executive Vice President of Northrop Rice Advanced Institute of Technology Email: a.f.laviano@nanoworldusa.com

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