Nanotechnologists build machines and work with materials smaller than 100 nanometers, including organic particles in the human body and environment. They use high-power microscopes and can work in various fields, including manufacturing, environmental, and medical industries. Nanotechnology is a growing industry with salaries ranging from $30,000 to over $100,000 annually.
A nanotechnologist is a type of scientist or engineer who builds machines and works with organic and inorganic materials smaller than 100 nanometers. While nanotechnology often resembles images of tiny computer chips or microscopic machines, the field is also about how nanoscale organic particles function in the human body and the environment. A nanotechnologist can enter a wide range of fields and typically earns a degree in a science or engineering field with a minor in nanotechnology.
A single nanometer is about a billionth of a meter. To put that in perspective, there are 25,400,000 nanometers in an inch. A single sheet of paper is about 100,000 nanometers thick and a human hair is 80,000 nanometers wide. A nanotechnologist uses a special high-power microscope capable of showing particles at the atomic scale.
Nanoscale materials can be manufactured in the laboratory or found in nature. Natural sources include volcanic ash, smoke and sea spray. Nanomaterials have been used for over 1,000 years and have been found in swords and gilded stained glass dating back many centuries. Nanotechnology as a specialized field, however, did not emerge until the 1980s.
Nanotechnology is part of many different industries, and a nanotechnologist has several options to choose from. Some work in the manufacturing industry, developing new machine processes that rely on nanomaterials. For example, a nanotechnologist might work with nanoimprint technology, a process that allows nanoscale features to be imprinted or stamped onto a surface. Others might work in environmental areas, developing methods to clean water and air using nanomaterials. The medical industry uses nanotechnology to develop new diagnostic and therapeutic tools.
Nanotechnology focuses as much on the future as it does on the present, and nanotechnologists work to create new solutions to old problems. In the medical industry, researchers are looking for ways to use nanotechnology to stimulate the growth of new nerves in the human nervous system. In transport, they are trying to develop more environmentally friendly transport. In the future, bridges, roads and other structures could use nanomachines to monitor the safety and integrity of the structure.
The nanotechnology industry is a significant growth industry and is expected to continue to add jobs to the economies of the US, Japan and across Europe. The annual salary of a nanotechnologist depends on his level of education. Those with a two-year degree can earn between $30,000 and $50,000 a year, while those with a doctorate can earn upwards of $100,000 annually.
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