National Science and Technology Council

Committee on Technology

Subcommittee on Nanoscale Science, 

Engineering, and Technology

February 2014

NAT IONA L NA NOTECHNOLOGY 

INIT I AT IV E 

STRATEGIC PLAN
About the National Science and Technology Council 

The National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) is the principal means by which the Executive Branch 

coordinates science and technology policy across the diverse entities that make up the Federal research and 

development enterprise. A primary objective of the NSTC is establishing clear national goals for Federal 

science and technology investments. The NSTC prepares research and development strategies that are 

coordinated across Federal agencies to form investment packages aimed at accomplishing multiple national 

goals. The work of the NSTC is organized under committees that oversee subcommittees and working groups 

focused on different aspects of science and technology. More information is available at

www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/ostp/nstc. 

About the Office of Science and Technology Policy 

The Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) was established by the National Science and Technology 

Policy, Organization, and Priorities Act of 1976. OSTP’s responsibilities include advising the President in policy 

formulation and budget development on questions in which science and technology are important elements; 

articulating the President’s science and technology policy and programs; and fostering strong partnerships 

among Federal, state, and local governments, and the scientific communities in industry and academia. The 

Director of OSTP also serves as Assistant to the President for Science and Technology and manages the NSTC.

More information is available at www.ostp.gov. 

About the Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology Subcommittee

The Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology (NSET) Subcommittee is the interagency body responsible 

for coordinating, planning, implementing, and reviewing the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI). It is a 

subcommittee of the Committee on Technology (CoT) of the National Science and Technology Council. The 

National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO) provides technical and administrative support to the 

NSET Subcommittee and its working groups in the preparation of multiagency planning, budget, and 

assessment documents related to the NNI, including this strategy document. More information is available at 

www.nano.gov. 

About this Document

This document is the strategic plan for the NNI. It describes the NNI vision and goals and the strategies by which 

these goals are to be achieved. The plan includes a description of the NNI investment strategy and the program 

component areas called for by the 21st Century Research and Development Act of 2003, and it also identifies 

specific objectives toward collectively achieving the NNI vision. This plan updates and replaces the NNI Strategic 

Plan of February 2011.

Copyright Information

This document is a work of the United States Government and is in the public domain (see 17 U.S.C. §105). 

Subject to the stipulations below, it may be distributed and copied with acknowledgement to NNCO. Copyrights 

to graphics included in this document are reserved by the original copyright holders or their assignees and are 

used here under the Government’s license and by permission. Requests to use any images must be made to the 

provider identified in the image credits or to NNCO if no provider is identified.

Printed in the United States of America, 2014.
National Science and Technology Council

Committee on Technology

Subcommittee on Nanoscale Science, 

Engineering, and Technology

February 2014

NAT IONA L NA NOTECHNOLOGY 

INIT I AT IV E 

STRATEGIC PLAN
 ii 

National Science and Technology Council

Committee on Technology (CoT)

Subcommittee on Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology (NSET)

CoT Chair: Thomas Kalil, Office of Science and Technology Policy

CoT Executive Secretary: Randy Paris, Office of Science and Technology Policy

NSET Subcommittee Chair:

Altaf H. Carim, Office of Science and Technology 

Policy

National Nanotechnology Coordination Office: 

Lloyd J. Whitman, Interim Director

NSET Subcommittee Executive Secretary: 

Tarek R. Fadel, National Nanotechnology Coordination Office

NSET Subcommittee Participants

Office of Science and Technology 

Policy (OSTP) 

Altaf H. Carim*

Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) 

Danielle Jones*

James Kim* 

Celinda Marsh*

Consumer Product Safety Commission 

(CPSC)†

Mary Ann Danello* 

Treye A. Thomas*

Department of Commerce (DOC)

Bureau of Industry and Security 

(BIS)

Kelly Gardner*

Economic Development 

Administration (EDA)

Thomas Guevara*

National Institute of Standards 

and Technology (NIST)

Heather Evans*

Ajit Jillavenkatesa*

Debra L. Kaiser

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office 

(USPTO)

Gladys Corcoran*

David R. Gerk* 

Bruce Kisliuk*

Department of Defense (DOD)

Mostafiz Chowdhury

Jeffrey DePriest*

Akbar Khan*

Heather Meeks

Brian D. Pate

Gernot S. Pomrenke*

Lewis E. Sloter*

David M. Stepp*

Peter Vandeventer

Department of Education (DOEd)

Peirce Hammond* 

Department of Energy (DOE)

Harriet Kung*

George Maracas*

John C. Miller*

Andrew R. Schwartz*

Brian G. Valentine*

Department of Health and Human 

Services (DHHS)

Agency for Toxic Substances and 

Disease Registry (ATSDR)

Candis M. Hunter

Food and Drug Administration 

(FDA)

Jed Costanza*

National Institute for 

Occupational Safety and Health 

(NIOSH)

Charles L. Geraci*

Vladimir V. Murashov*

National Institutes of Health 

(NIH)

Piotr Grodzinski*

Lori Henderson*

Department of Homeland Security 

(DHS)

Eric J. Houser*

Richard T. Lareau* 

Department of the Interior (DOI)

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)

Sarah Gerould*

Department of Justice (DOJ)

National Institute of Justice (NIJ)

Joseph Heaps* 

Department of Labor (DOL)

Occupational Safety and Health 

Administration (OSHA)

Janet Carter*

Department of State (DOS)

Christopher M. Cannizzaro*

Ken Hodgkins* 

Department of Transportation (DOT)

Peter Chipman*

Jonathan R. Porter*

Department of the Treasury 

(DOTreas)

John F. Bobalek*

KEY * Official NSET Representative

† Denotes an independent commission that is represented on NSET but is non-voting
 iii 

NSET Subcommittee Participants (continued)

Environmental Protection Agency 

(EPA)

Tina Bahadori*

William K. Boyes*

Nora F. Savage*

Philip G. Sayre*

Intelligence Community (IC)

Office of the Director of National 

Intelligence (ODNI)

Richard Ridgley*

National Reconnaissance Office 

(NRO)

Matthew Cobert* 

National Aeronautics and Space 

Administration (NASA) 

Michael A. Meador*

National Science Foundation (NSF)

Parag R. Chitnis*

Khershed Cooper*

Barbara Karn

Fred Kronz

Thomas P. Rieker*

Mihail C. Roco*

Grace J. Wang*

Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

(NRC)†

Brian Thomas*

U.S. Department of Agriculture 

(USDA)

Agricultural Research Service 

(ARS)

Robert Fireovid* 

Forest Service (FS) 

World L.-S. Nieh* 

Theodore H. Wegner* 

National Institute of Food and 

Agriculture (NIFA) 

Hongda Chen*

U.S. International Trade Commission 

(USITC)†

Elizabeth R. Nesbitt* 

KEY * Official NSET Representative

† Denotes an independent commission that is represented on NSET but is non-voting
 iv 

Acknowledgments

The individuals listed below dedicated considerable time and expertise to write and produce the 2014 

NNI Strategic Plan. 

Strategic Planning Co-Chairs: Debra L. Kaiser (NIST) and World L.-S. Nieh (USDA/FS)

Strategic Planning Project Manager: Stacey Standridge (NNCO, contractor)

Writing Team Section Chairs and Co-Chairs: Lisa Friedersdorf (Nanotechnology Signature Initiative

Chair, NNCO, contractor), Charles L. Geraci (Goal 4 Co-Chair, DHHS/NIOSH), Fred Kronz (Goal 4 Co-Chair, 

NSF), Michael A. Meador (Goal 2 Chair, NASA), Brian D. Pate (Goal 1 Co-Chair, DOD), Robert G. Rudnitsky 

(Goal 3 Chair, NIST), Lewis E. Sloter (PCA Chair, DOD), and David M. Stepp (Goal 1 Co-Chair, DOD)

Additional Writing Team Contributors: John F. Bobalek (DOTreas), Christopher M. Cannizzaro (DOS), 

Altaf H. Carim (OSTP), Janet Carter (DOL/OSHA), Khershed Cooper (NSF), Cheryl David-Fordyce (NNCO, 

contractor), Meredith M. Drosback (OSTP, AAAS S&T Policy Fellow), Heather Evans (NIST), William

Frazier (DOD), J. Aura Gimm (DOD, AAAS S&T Policy Fellow), Lori Henderson (DHHS/NIH), Geoffrey M. 

Holdridge (NNCO, contractor), Candis Hunter (DHHS/ATSDR), Alan J. Hurd (DOS, Franklin Fellow), Saber

Hussain (DOD), Ajit Jillavenkatesa (NIST), Barbara Karn (NSF), Igor Linkov (DOD), Heather Meeks (DOD), 

John C. Miller (DOE), Vladimir V. Murashov (DHHS/NIOSH), Sri Nadadur (DHHS/NIH), Elizabeth R. Nesbitt 

(USITC), Carlos L. Peña (DHHS/FDA), Robert Pohanka (NNCO), Dennis L. Polla (DOD), Thomas P. Rieker 

(NSF), Andrew R. Schwartz (DOE), Calvin Shipbaugh (DOD), Treye A. Thomas (CPSC), Brian G. Valentine 

(DOE), Peter Vandeventer (DOD), Christopher Weis (DHHS/NIH), Lloyd J. Whitman (NIST), and Steven

Zullo (DHHS/NIH) 
EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

NATIONAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COUNCIL

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20502

 v 

February 26, 2014 

Dear Members of Congress: 

 Nanotechnology—the science of the very small—is a relatively young field, ripe for new 

discoveries and understanding. But nanotechnology is already changing the world. Advances enabled by 

Federal investments in nanotechnology underpin a wide variety of applications and products on the 

market today, including electronic circuitry, displays, sensors, battery technology, disease therapeutics, 

and wear-resistant coatings.

Since 2001, the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) has served as the vehicle for 

coordinating and reporting on activities in this dynamic field across the Federal Government. Twenty 

departments, independent agencies, and independent commissions participate in the NNI, representing a 

wide variety of missions, responsibilities, interests, and expertise. The NNI Strategic Plan outlines the 

broad goals of the Initiative and supports those goals by delineating specific objectives. It provides a 

framework to foster coordination and collaboration across agencies and serves as a guide for individual 

NNI member agencies as they prioritize activities relating to research, development, training, and 

infrastructure.

The NNI has evolved over time in both its structure and its emphasis. In recent years there has 

been growing activity in environmental, health, and safety research; cooperation among regulatory 

agencies; and commercialization and advanced manufacturing at the nanoscale. These shifts and others 

are reflected in the 2014 Strategic Plan, which describes a revised reporting structure for Program 

Component Areas; details a number of focused, topical Signature Initiatives; summarizes the roles of the 

National Science and Technology Council’s Subcommittee on Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and 

Technology and related bodies; and discusses the growing array of intersections with related Federal 

initiatives. 

Great progress has been made in the past thirteen years, but much more remains to be discovered. 

The NNI Strategic Plan will help ensure that America remains a global leader in nanotechnology while 

this fast-maturing discipline continues to support economic growth, job creation, and solutions to a range 

of national challenges. 

Sincerely,

John P. Holdren 

Assistant to the President for Science and Technology

Director, Office of Science and Technology Policy 

 vii 

Table of Contents

Tables..................................................................................................................................................viii

The NNI.................................................................................................................................................. 1

Introduction ......................................................................................................................................................................... 1

Vision and Goals ................................................................................................................................................................. 5

Agency Interests in the NNI............................................................................................................................................ 6

Goals and Objectives..........................................................................................................................23

Goal 1: Advance a world-class nanotechnology research and development program. ...................... 23

Goal 2: Foster the transfer of new technologies into products for commercial and public benefit. ... 26

Goal 3: Develop and sustain educational resources, a skilled workforce, and a dynamic 

infrastructure and toolset to advance nanotechnology. .................................................................. 30

Goal 4: Support responsible development of nanotechnology. .................................................................. 34

Program Component Areas................................................................................................................39

Overview ............................................................................................................................................................................ 39

Nanotechnology Signature Initiatives ..................................................................................................................... 42

Relationship between PCAs and Agency Interests ............................................................................................. 47

Coordination and Assessment...........................................................................................................51

Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology Subcommittee (NSET) ................................................ 51

Executive Office of the President (EOP) .................................................................................................................. 55

Related Interagency Activities ................................................................................................................................... 55

Assessment ....................................................................................................................................................................... 55

Concluding Remarks...........................................................................................................................57

Appendix A. External Assessment and Stakeholder Input.............................................................59

External Assessment Reports ..................................................................................................................................... 59

2013 NNI Strategic Planning Stakeholder Workshop, June 2013 .................................................................. 59

Public Comment on Draft Strategic Plan, November 2013 ............................................................................. 59

Appendix B. 2013 NNI Strategic Planning Stakeholder Workshop Summary................................60

Plenary Sessions .............................................................................................................................................................. 60

Breakout Sessions ........................................................................................................................................................... 66

Appendix C: Overview of Former Program Component Areas (PCAs) and Comparison with 

Revised PCAs................................................................................................................................. 72

Appendix D. Abbreviations and Acronyms.......................................................................................75
 viii 

Tables

Table 1: Federal Departments and Agencies Participating in the NNI .................................................................. 3

Table 2: Program Component Areas Defined for Fiscal Year 2015 ....................................................................... 40

Table 3: Relationships between the Program Component Areas and the Missions, Interests, 

and Needs of NNI Agencies ............................................................................................................................... 48

Table 4: Relationships of NNI Program Component Areas to NNI Goals and Objectives ............................. 49

Table C-1: Program Component Areas for Fiscal Years 2006–2014 ....................................................................... 72

Table C-2: Crosswalk between Former and Revised PCAs........................................................................................ 74
 1 

The NNI

The National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) is the U.S. Federal Government’s interagency activity1 for 

coordinating research and development (R&D) as well as enhancing communication and collaborative 

activities in nanoscale science, engineering, and technology. This chapter describes the NNI, the vision 

and goals that frame the NNI, and the related interests and activities of the participating NNI 

agencies.

2

Introduction

Nanotechnology is the understanding and control of matter at dimensions between approximately 

1 and 100 nanometers, where unique phenomena enable novel applications. Work within the 

intersecting disciplines at the core of nanotechnology innovation—including physical, life, and social 

sciences and engineering—has revealed the potential of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) and 

nanoscale processes to collect and store energy, reinforce materials, sense contaminants, enable lifesaving drugs, and shrink and accelerate computational devices in both incremental and paradigmshifting ways. Further, nanotechnology has enabled development of entirely new materials and 

devices that can be exploited in each of these and countless other applications. 

The United States has set the pace for nanotechnology innovation worldwide with the National 

Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI). Launched in 2001 with eight agencies participating, the NNI today 

consists of the individual and cooperative nanotechnology-related activities of 20 Federal 

departments and independent agencies with a range of research and regulatory roles and 

responsibilities (see Table 1). Eleven of the participating agencies have R&D budgets that relate to

What is Nanotechnology?*

* The scope of this definition was established 

by the NNI at its inception for identifying and 

coordinating Federal nanotechnology 

research and development as well as for 

facilitating communication.

Nanotechnology is the understanding and control of matter 

at dimensions between approximately 1 and 100 nanometers

(nm), where unique phenomena enable novel applications. 

Encompassing nanoscale science, engineering, and 

technology, nanotechnology involves imaging, measuring, 

modeling, and manipulating matter at this length scale.

A nanometer is one-billionth of a meter. A sheet of paper is 

about 100,000 nanometers thick; a single gold atom is about a 

third of a nanometer in diameter. Dimensions between 

approximately 1 and 100 nm are known as the nanoscale. 

Unusual physical, chemical, and biological properties can 

emerge in materials at the nanoscale. These properties may 

differ in important ways from the properties of bulk materials 

and single atoms or molecules.

 

1 The 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act refers to the NNI as a “program.” To avoid 

confusion with agency-specific definitions of the word “program,” the NNI will hereafter be referred to as the 

“Initiative.”

2 Participants in the NNI include Federal departments, independent agencies, and independent commissions, 

which are collectively referred to as participating “agencies” within this document.
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

 2 

nanotechnology, with the reported NNI budget representing the collective sum of these investments. 

Funding support for nanotechnology R&D stems directly from NNI agencies, not from any centralized 

NNI budget. As an interagency effort, the NNI informs and influences the Federal budget and planning 

processes through its participating agencies and through the National Science and Technology 

Council (NSTC).

Coordinated under the Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology (NSET) Subcommittee of the 

NSTC’s Committee on Technology (CoT), the NNI provides a framework for a comprehensive 

nanotechnology R&D program by establishing shared goals, priorities, and strategies that 

complement agency-specific missions and activities and that provide avenues for individual agencies 

to leverage the resources of all participating agencies. Further, the NNI provides a central interface for 

stakeholders and interested members of the general public, including those from academia, industry, 

regional/state organizations, and international counterparts. To these ends, the National 

Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO) provides technical and administrative support to the 

NSET Subcommittee, serves as a central point of contact for Federal nanotechnology R&D activities, 

and provides public outreach on behalf of the NNI. Working groups established by the NSET 

Subcommittee provide an infrastructure to strengthen interagency coordination and collaboration on 

critical nanotechnology issues, and coordinators are named in specific cross-cutting areas to serve as 

primary points of contact for these topics. 

U.S. leadership in fundamental nanotechnology R&D under the NNI has established a thriving 

nanotechnology R&D environment, laid the crucial groundwork for developing commercial 

applications and scaling up production, and created demand for many nanotechnology and 

manufacturing jobs in the near term. The NNI has dramatically expanded scientific understanding of 

nanoscale phenomena and has enabled development and engineering for a variety of applications

through an extensive and unparalleled infrastructure of R&D centers, networks, and user facilities. The 

Federal investments in nanotechnology R&D have positioned the United States to address key 

national priorities, bring new expertise to bear on important scientific and social problems, strengthen 

the social contract between science and society, and inspire a growing number of students to pursue 

careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Growing from the NNI agencies’

ongoing investments in foundational R&D, NNI activities aimed at accelerating commercialization

have taken on added importance. 

While the progress of nanotechnology innovations to date has been significant, numerous challenges 

still exist, and the tremendous potential anticipated from nanoscale R&D is still far from total

realization. Achieving the full value of nanotechnology innovation depends on sustained foundational 

R&D and on focused commercialization efforts. Barriers need to be lowered and pathways streamlined 

to transfer emerging nanotechnologies into economically viable applications. Researchers, educators, 

and technicians with new, cross-cutting skills are also required. Furthermore, there must be a national 

commitment to responsibly develop nanotechnology with balanced and transparent consideration of 

the benefits and risks associated with particular ENMs in specific applications. For these reasons, 
THE NNI

 3 

Table 1: Federal Departments and Agencies Participating in the NNI

11 Federal departments and independent agencies and commissions with 

nanotechnology R&D budgets

Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)†

Department of Commerce (DOC)

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)

Department of Defense (DOD)

Department of Energy (DOE)

Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) 

Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)

National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Department of Homeland Security (DHS)

Department of Transportation (DOT)

Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

National Science Foundation (NSF)

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)

Agricultural Research Service (ARS)

Forest Service (FS) 

National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)

9 other participating departments and independent agencies and commissions

Department of Education (DOEd)

Department of the Interior (DOI)

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)

Department of Justice (DOJ)

National Institute of Justice (NIJ)

Department of Labor (DOL)

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

Department of State (DOS)

Department of the Treasury (DOTreas)

Intelligence Community (IC) 

Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI)

Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)†

U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC)†

Also participating from the Department of Commerce (DOC), listed above

Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS)

Economic Development Administration (EDA)

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)

KEY † Denotes an independent commission that is represented on NSET but is non-voting
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

 4 

broad-based coordination and integration of development efforts across Government agencies, 

academic disciplines, industries, and countries remain critical to attaining the full economic and 

societal benefits promised by nanotechnology. 

The National Nanotechnology Initiative Strategic Plan is the framework that underpins the 

nanotechnology work of the NNI agencies. It aims to ensure that advancements in and applications of 

nanotechnology continue in this vital area of R&D, while addressing potential concerns about future 

and existing applications. Its purpose is to facilitate achievement of the NNI vision and goals, which are 

outlined below, by laying out guidance for agency leaders, program managers, and the research 

community regarding planning and implementation of nanotechnology R&D investments and 

activities. 

The NSET Subcommittee solicited multiple streams of input to inform the development of this revised 

NNI Strategic Plan. Independent reviews of the NNI by the President’s Council of Advisors on Science 

and Technology and the National Research Council of the National Academies—strongly supportive of 

the NNI overall—have made specific recommendations for improving the Initiative.

3 Additional input 

came from the 2013 NNI Strategic Planning Stakeholder Workshop on June 11–12, 2013, as well as from 

detailed responses from the public to targeted questions that were published on www.nano.gov from 

June 7, 2013 to June 14, 2013.

4 The draft strategic plan was posted on www.nano.gov for a 30-day 

public comment period from November 19 to December 18, 2013. 

Thus informed by feedback and recommendations from a broad array of stakeholders, this strategic 

plan represents the consensus of the participating agencies as to the high-level goals and priorities of 

the NNI and specific objectives for at least the next three years. It serves as an integrated, interagency 

approach that informs the nanotechnology-specific strategic plans of NNI agencies (e.g., the Strategic 

Plan for NIOSH Nanotechnology Research and Guidance,

5 the EPA’s Nanomaterial Research Strategy,6 and

the FDA’s Nanotechnology Regulatory Science Research Plan7

). Accordingly, the strategic plan provides 

the framework within which each agency will carry out its own mission-related nanotechnology 

programs and that will sustain coordination of interagency activities. It describes the four overarching 

goals of the NNI, the major program component areas (PCAs)—established in 2004 and revised in 

2013—that are used to broadly track the categories of investments needed to ensure the success of 

the Initiative, and the near-term objectives that provide concrete steps toward collectively achieving 

the NNI vision and goals. Finally, the plan describes collaborative interagency activities. These include

Nanotechnology Signature Initiatives (NSIs), which serve as a model of specifically targeted and closely 

coordinated interagency, cross-sector collaboration designed to accelerate innovation in areas of 

national priority. The first three NSIs, launched in 2010, are focused on solar energy, sustainable 

manufacturing, and next-generation electronics. Two additional NSIs on informatics and sensors were 

introduced in 2012. 

 

3 See Appendix A for details on external reviews and assessments of the NNI.

4 More information about the workshop and stakeholder input is available in Appendix B.

5 www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2010-105 6 www.epa.gov/nanoscience/files/nanotech_research_strategy_final.pdf

7 www.fda.gov/ScienceResearch/SpecialTopics/Nanotechnology/ucm273325.htm
THE NNI

 5 

The 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act of 20038 calls for the NNI Strategic 

Plan to be updated triennially. The first NNI Strategic Plan in 2004 outlined the Initiative’s 

management, vision and goals, and PCAs, as well as technical areas addressed. The 2007 plan further 

developed the concepts presented in 2004 with an emphasis both on the coordination of the Initiative 

and on critical research needs. The 2011 plan introduced objectives under the four goals as well as the 

NSI program. The plan presented here updates and replaces the 2011 plan. Revised PCAs are included, 

as is an enhanced emphasis on key research priorities through the NSIs.

Vision and Goals

The vision of the NNI is a future in which the ability to understand and control matter at the nanoscale 

leads to a revolution in technology and industry that benefits society. The NNI expedites the discovery, 

development, and deployment of nanoscale science, engineering, and technology to serve the public 

good through a program of coordinated research and development aligned with the missions of the 

participating agencies. In order to realize the NNI vision, the NNI agencies are working collectively 

toward the following four goals:

Goal 1: Advance a world-class nanotechnology research and development program. 

The NNI enables U.S. leadership in nanotechnology R&D by stimulating discovery and innovation. 

The Initiative expands the boundaries of knowledge and develops technologies through a 

comprehensive program of R&D. The NNI agencies invest at the frontiers and intersections of many 

disciplines, including biology, chemistry, engineering, materials science, and physics. The interest 

in nanotechnology arises from its potential to significantly impact numerous fields, including 

aerospace, agriculture, energy, the environment, healthcare, information technology, homeland 

security, national defense, and transportation systems. 

Goal 2: Foster the transfer of new technologies into products for commercial and public 

benefit. 

Nanotechnology contributes to U.S. competitiveness and national security by improving existing 

products and processes and by creating new ones. The NNI agencies implement strategies that 

maximize the economic and public benefits of their investments in nanotechnology, based on 

understanding the fundamental science and responsibly translating this knowledge into practical 

applications. 

Goal 3: Develop and sustain educational resources, a skilled workforce, and a dynamic

infrastructure and toolset to advance nanotechnology. 

A skilled science and engineering workforce, leading-edge instrumentation, and state-of-the-art 

facilities are essential to advancing nanotechnology R&D. Educational programs and resources are 

required to inform the general public, decision makers, and other stakeholders (including 

regulators, managers, insurers, and financiers), and to produce the next generation of 

nanotechnologists—that is, the researchers, inventors, engineers, and technicians who drive 

discovery, innovation, industry, and manufacturing. 

 

8 Pub. L. No. 108-153, § 7501, 117 Stat. 1923 (2003).
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

 6 

Goal 4: Support responsible development of nanotechnology. 

The NNI aims to responsibly develop nanotechnology by maximizing the benefits of 

nanotechnology while, at the same time, developing an understanding of potential risks and the 

means to assess and manage them. Specifically, the NNI agencies pursue a program of research, 

education, collaboration, and communication focused on the environmental, health, and safety

(EHS) implications of nanotechnology—informed by the interagency 2011 NNI EHS Research 

Strategy9

—and on broader societal dimensions of nanotechnology development. In addition, NNI 

agency efforts are guided by two memoranda from the Emerging Technologies Interagency Policy 

Coordination Committee (ETIPC)10 that outline broad principles for regulation and oversight of 

emerging technologies and, more specifically, nanotechnology.11,12 Responsible development 

requires engagement with universities, industry, government agencies (local, regional, state, and 

Federal), nongovernmental organizations, and other communities.

As the NNI agencies work toward realizing the NNI vision, success will not be defined as a static 

endpoint. Rather, success will be measured by continual and substantive progress toward the four 

goals. For example, progress may be reflected in each of the goals by the following: Goal 1—the 

frontiers of knowledge are substantially advanced through a robust and interdisciplinary R&D 

program; Goal 2—innovative nanotechnology-enabled products (NEPs) are commercialized by a 

vibrant and competitive industry sector; Goal 3—the general public has access to information on 

fundamental nanotechnology concepts, a skilled nanotechnology workforce is trained, and 

scientists/engineers are aware of and have access to state-of-the-art facilities; and Goal 4—tools for 

characterizing hazard and exposure are developed, agencies enhance their capacity to evaluate the 

application of nanotechnology, and relevant EHS information is disseminated among stakeholders. 

Agency Interests in the NNI 

The NSET Subcommittee was established in July 2000 as part of the NSTC CoT to facilitate interagency 

collaboration on nanoscale R&D and to provide a framework for setting Federal R&D budget priorities 

related to nanotechnology. Moreover, the NSET Subcommittee provides a platform for 

communication, collaboration, and coordination that continues to promote the engagement of all 

participating agencies, including those with an interest but no targeted funding in nanotechnology. In 

the following sections, the agencies describe their individual interests in nanotechnology R&D and the 

NNI, as they collectively contribute to the welfare of the Nation and to their respective agency 

missions and responsibilities.13

Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)

CPSC, in cooperation with Federal partners, analyzes the use and safety of nanotechnology in 

consumer products. In order to meet identified data needs, the CPSC staff has met with and 

 

9 www.nano.gov/node/681 10 The ETIPC is described more thoroughly in the “Coordination and Assessment” chapter. 11 www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/microsites/ostp/etipc-memo-3-11-2011.pdf 12 www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/inforeg/for-agencies/nanotechnology-regulation-andoversight-principles.pdf 13 The latest information on the nanotechnology activities of NNI agencies is available at www.nano.gov. 
THE NNI

 7 

collaborates with staff at a number of Federal agencies in areas of mutual interest where collaboration 

would be beneficial and support the respective missions of each agency. More consumer products are 

using compounds or materials that have been produced using nanotechnologies that directly 

manipulate matter at the atomic level and produce materials that could not have been produced in 

the past. 

Nanomaterials with the same chemical composition as larger-scale materials may demonstrate 

different physical and chemical properties and may behave differently in the environment and the 

human body. CPSC has developed an internal nanotechnology team composed of various technical 

experts (e.g., engineers, toxicologists, and economists) to advise the Commission on the safe use of 

nanotechnology in consumer products. As part of the NNI, the CPSC nanotechnology team 

participates in the interagency collection and analysis of data and in the development of reports that 

focus on the potential EHS issues associated with the use of nanotechnology.

Department of Commerce (DOC)

DOC participates in the NNI to promote job creation, economic growth, sustainable development, and 

improved standards of living for all Americans by working in partnership with businesses, universities, 

communities, and our Nation’s workers. The Department touches the daily lives of the American 

people in many ways, with a wide range of responsibilities where nanotechnology is important, 

including trade, economic development, technology, entrepreneurship and business development, 

environmental stewardship, and statistical research and analysis. The Bureau of Industry and Security 

(BIS), Economic Development Administration (EDA), National Institute of Standards and Technology 

(NIST), and U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) are active participants in the NSET 

Subcommittee. Their engagement informs the department-wide coordination of nanotechnology 

trade and economic policy, R&D, standards activities, and the protection of intellectual property across 

the Federal Government. 

Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS)

The interagency coordination provided by the NNI enables BIS to stay apprised of new 

nanotechnology advancements that may present national security challenges and that may 

provide opportunities for companies in the national defense industrial base. Further, the NNI 

creates mechanisms (e.g., through regular meetings of the NSET Subcommittee) for BIS to share 

information about national security needs and challenges with other Federal agencies. BIS may 

also exercise its statutory data collection authority, as needed, in support of the NNI vision. 

Together, these exchanges support the BIS mission to advance U.S. national security, foreign 

policy, and economic objectives by ensuring an effective export control and treaty compliance 

system and promoting continued U.S. strategic technology leadership.

Economic Development Administration (EDA)

The mission of EDA is to lead the Federal economic development agenda by promoting 

innovation and competitiveness, preparing American regions for growth and success in the 

worldwide economy. Economic development results in a sustained increase in prosperity and 

quality of life through innovation, lowered transaction costs, and the utilization of capabilities 

toward the responsible production and diffusion of goods and services. The vision and four goals 
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

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of the NNI Strategic Plan align strongly with EDA’s mission and leading-edge economic 

development policy. The NSET Subcommittee provides a venue for EDA to understand the current 

state of nanotechnology development and to collaborate across the Federal Government to 

increase the rate and efficiency of nanotechnology commercialization efforts that originate in and 

near our Nation’s research laboratories. EDA's support for commercialization includes funding for 

innovation centers, coordination with universities and Federal labs, collaborative funding 

opportunities with other Federal agencies, and technical assistance and capacity building for 

regional innovation ecosystems that support entrepreneurs. Further, EDA funding priorities 

include support for innovation in nanotechnology-relevant sectors such as advanced and additive 

manufacturing, energy, green growth, and others.

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) 

Advancing nanoscale measurement science, standards, and technology is an important 

component of NIST’s mission to promote U.S. innovation and industrial competitiveness. From 

leading cutting-edge research, to providing world-class user facilities, to coordinating the 

development of standards that promote trade and enable regulation of NEPs, NIST’s 

nanotechnology program directly impacts priorities important to the Nation’s economy and wellbeing. The NNI-related research conducted in NIST’s laboratories and user facilities develops 

measurements, standards, and data crucial to a wide range of industries and Federal agencies, 

from the development of new measurement and fabrication methods necessary for advanced 

manufacturing to the development of the reference materials and data necessary to accurately 

measure key nanomaterial properties needed for the responsible development and use of 

nanotechnology. NIST further supports the U.S. nanotechnology enterprise through its two user 

facilities, the NIST Center for Neutron Research (NCNR) and the Center for Nanoscale Science and 

Technology (CNST). The NCNR provides access to a broad range of world-class neutron scattering 

tools for characterizing the atomic- and nanometer-scale structure and dynamics of materials. As 

the Department of Commerce’s nanotechnology user facility, the CNST enables innovation by 

providing rapid access to the tools needed to make and measure nanostructures, with a particular 

emphasis on helping industry.

The NNI has enabled NIST to prioritize and coordinate nanotechnology research in numerous 

areas, most notably in nanoelectronics, nanomanufacturing, and energy, as well as the

environmental, health, and safety aspects of nanomaterials (nanoEHS). NIST is working closely 

with other NNI agencies in planning and implementing the NSIs. Through activities of the NSET 

Subcommittee’s Nanotechnology Environmental and Health Implications (NEHI) Working Group, 

NIST receives input from a broad range of stakeholders on the critical measurement science and

measurement tools—protocols, standards, instruments, models, and validated data—required for 

risk assessment and management of ENMs and NEPs. This input is essential to the development 

and implementation of NIST’s nanoEHS program, including its goals and milestones.

NIST staff members participate widely in nanotechnology-related standards development and 

international cooperation activities in order to promote transfer of NIST research, technology, and 

measurement services and to advance NNI objectives within the Department of Commerce 

mission. NIST staff also participates and provides leadership roles in many key collaborative 
THE NNI

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activities such as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) Working 

Party on Manufactured Nanomaterials, and in the development of nanotechnology standards in 

international forums, such as the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Technical 

Committee 229, the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) Technical Committee 113, and 

ASTM International Committee E56. Interagency coordination and information-sharing related to 

these activities is facilitated through the NSET Subcommittee and the NNI’s Coordinator for Global 

Issues. 

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)

The strength and vitality of the U.S. economy depends directly on effective mechanisms that 

protect new ideas and investments in innovation and creativity. USPTO is at the cutting edge of 

the Nation’s technological progress and achievement as the Federal agency responsible for

granting patents, registering trademarks, and providing intellectual property policy advice and 

guidance to the Executive Branch. Through its participation in the NNI and work with other 

agencies in the NSET Subcommittee, USPTO has made several improvements to its processes to 

keep pace with the rapid advances being made in this area. Notably, USPTO adopted the NNI 

definition of nanotechnology in its development of the first detailed, patent-related 

nanotechnology classification hierarchy of any major intellectual property office in the world. 

USPTO also has used the networking and information-sharing opportunities presented by 

participation in the NNI to establish nanotechnology-related training opportunities for patent 

examiners. USPTO has significantly contributed to the NNI by providing advice on patent and 

other intellectual-property-related matters as well as contributing a variety of nanotechnologyrelated patent data, which have been used as benchmarks to analyze nanotechnology 

development and to perform trend analysis of nanotechnology patenting activity in the United 

States and globally.

Department of Defense (DOD) 

DOD leadership considers nanotechnology to have high and growing potential to contribute to the 

warfighting capabilities of the Nation. Because of the broad and interdisciplinary nature of 

nanotechnology, DOD leadership views it as an enabling technology area that should receive the 

highest level of Department attention and coordination. The vision of the Assistant Secretary of 

Defense for Research and Engineering includes nano science and engineering as one of six high 

interest basic science areas, along with synthetic biology, quantum information science, cognitive 

neuroscience, human behavior modeling, and novel engineered materials. The definition, potential, 

and challenges of nanotechnology are described by DOD in the following terms: the science of 

materials on the atomic scale makes possible new classes of electronics and sensors, chemical 

catalysts, high-strength materials, and energetic materials. Challenges include developing new ENMs, 

functionalizing them when necessary, and incorporating them into devices. More specifically, 

nanotechnology is an enabling technology for new classes of sensors (such as novel focal plane arrays 

and chemical/biological threat sensors), communications, and information processing systems needed 

for qualitative improvements in persistent surveillance. DOD also invests in nanotechnology for 

advanced energetic materials, photocatalytic coatings, active microelectronic devices, structural fibers, 

strength- and toughness-enhancing additives, advanced processing, and a wide array of other 
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

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promising applications. The DOD nanotechnology efforts are based on coordinated planning and 

federated execution among the military departments and agencies (e.g., the Defense Advanced 

Research Projects Agency and the Defense Threat Reduction Agency). Although DOD does not 

establish funding targets for nanotechnology specifically, its support for nanotechnology-related R&D

has remained robust through the competitive success of nanotechnology-related efforts in core 

research planning, technology development solicitations, and other programs, such as Small Business 

Innovation Research (SBIR) and the Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative. 

DOD was among the initial participating agencies in the NNI and the NSET Subcommittee and 

considers the Initiative and its formal coordination forums to have been valuable as a means to 

facilitate technology planning, coordination, and communication among the Federal agencies. The 

meetings and workshops hosted or facilitated by the NSET Subcommittee and NNI participants help to 

identify and define options and opportunities that materially contribute to DOD planning activities 

and program formulation. The transparency that is enabled by the NNI is viewed as symmetrically 

beneficial to DOD, the other agencies, and the many private-sector stakeholders in the broad arena of 

nanoscience, nanotechnology, and nanotechnology-enabled applications.

Department of Education (DOEd)

DOEd faces major challenges in a number of education-related areas, including a need for more 

graduates and researchers in areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) 

education. By providing working groups, regular NSET Subcommittee meetings, and interagency 

communication channels, the NNI provides a mechanism for DOEd to better collaborate with other 

relevant agencies, such as the National Science Foundation, which makes substantial investments in 

nanotechnology-related education, and the Department of Labor, which follows trends in workforce 

needs.

Department of Energy (DOE)

DOE leadership views nanoscience and nanotechnology as having a vitally important role to play in 

solving the energy and climate-change challenges faced by the Nation. This broad and diverse field of 

R&D will likely have a dramatic impact on future technologies for solar energy collection and 

conversion, energy storage, alternative fuels, and energy efficiency, to name just a few. DOE has 

participated in the NNI since its inception and maintains a strong commitment to the Initiative, which 

has served as an effective and valuable way of spotlighting needs and targeting resources in this 

critical emerging area of science and technology. The NNI continues to provide a focus for overall 

investment in physical sciences, a crucial locus for interagency communication and collaboration, and 

an impetus for coordinated planning. The research and infrastructure successes spurred by the NNI 

have made the United States a world leader in this area, with significant national benefit. 

DOE funding includes investments in fundamental phenomena and processes, ENMs, 

nanotechnology-enabled devices, and major research facilities. In the latter category, the DOE 

investment is significantly larger than that of any other agency, due primarily to the operation of five 

Nanoscale Science Research Centers (NSRCs) located at DOE laboratories. The NSRCs operate as user 

facilities, with access based on submission of proposals that are reviewed by independent evaluation 

boards and provided at no cost for nonproprietary work. The NSRCs support synthesis, processing, 

fabrication, and analysis at the nanoscale and are designed to be state-of-the-art user centers for 
THE NNI

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interdisciplinary nanoscale research, serving as an integral part of DOE’s comprehensive nanoscience 

program that encompasses new science, new tools, and new computing capabilities.

Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)

DHHS participates in the National Nanotechnology Initiative as part of its mission to protect the health 

of all Americans and provide essential human services. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), 

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), and National Institutes of Health (NIH) 

contribute to the NSET Subcommittee to address a range of priorities relevant to the NNI. DHHS also 

contributes to the NNI EHS efforts toward responsible development of nanotechnology through a 

variety of mechanisms, most notably the NEHI Working Group of the NSET Subcommittee.

Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

The use of nanotechnology can alter the safety, effectiveness, performance, and/or quality of FDAregulated products. For this reason, FDA is interested in additional scientific information and tools 

to help better detect and predict potential effects of such changes on human or animal health. 

FDA investments will continue to enable the agency to address questions related to the safety, 

effectiveness, quality, and/or regulatory status of products that contain ENMs or otherwise involve 

the use of nanotechnology; develop models for safety and efficacy assessment; and study the 

behavior of nanomaterials in biological systems and their effects on human or animal health. 

These investments support FDA’s mission to protect and promote public health and help support

the responsible development of nanotechnology. 

FDA has developed a regulatory science program in nanotechnology to foster the responsible 

development of FDA-regulated products that may contain ENMs or otherwise involve the 

application of nanotechnology. The FDA program establishes tools, methods, and data to assist in 

regulatory decision-making while providing in-house scientific expertise and capacity that is 

responsive to nanotechnology-related FDA-regulated products. 

The Office of the Commissioner, in partnership with the FDA Nanotechnology Task Force, 

facilitates communication and cooperation across the agency on nanotechnology regulatory 

science research, both within FDA and with national and international stakeholders. The FDA 

Nanotechnology Task Force provides the overall coordination of FDA’s nanotechnology regulatory 

science research efforts in the following programmatic investment areas: (1) scientific staff 

development and professional training; (2) laboratory and product-testing capacity; and 

(3) collaborative and interdisciplinary regulatory science research. 

As needed and appropriate, FDA continues to foster and develop collaborative relationships with 

other Federal agencies through participation in the NNI and the NSET Subcommittee, as well as 

with regulatory agencies, international organizations, healthcare professionals, industry, 

consumers, and other stakeholders. These collaborations allow information to be exchanged 

efficiently and serve to identify research needs related to the use of ENMs in FDA-regulated 

products. 

Although FDA activities are relevant to all four NNI goals, FDA efforts are primarily focused on Goal

4, to support responsible development of nanotechnology.
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National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health is responsible for conducting research 

and providing guidance to protect the health and safety of people at work. Workers are generally 

the first people in society to be exposed to the hazards of an emerging technology, and 

nanotechnology is no exception. The workplaces where ENMs and NEPs are developed, 

investigated, manufactured, used, and disposed of are quite varied and span all economic sectors. 

NIOSH conducts focused research on hazard identification, exposure assessment, risk 

characterization, and risk management to protect the health and safety of workers, develop 

effective recommendations, and promote responsible development of the technology. In order to 

meet the need for a unified approach to this complex research challenge, the NIOSH 

Nanotechnology Research Center (NTRC) was chartered. NTRC provides internal coordination of 

research and serves as an interface point for NNI participating agencies.

NIOSH toxicology studies continue to provide better understanding of the ways in which some 

types of ENMs may enter the body and interact with the body’s organ systems. The scope of these 

research efforts has expanded beyond the few nanoparticle types evaluated at the start of the 

NIOSH nanotechnology research program. A key component of this effort is to understand the 

characteristics and properties relevant for predicting potential health risks. The toxicology studies 

have served as a starting point to identify the priority materials for further risk assessment, 

exposure evaluations, and development of risk management practices.

NIOSH field investigators continue to assess exposure to ENMs, including a focused effort on 

carbon nanotubes, in a growing number of workplaces. However, more data are needed on the full 

extent and magnitude of workers’ exposures to broad categories of ENMs in workplaces that 

manufacture or use ENMs, nanostructures, and nanodevices. NIOSH field investigators plan to 

expand the scope of assessment and the number and type of facilities that can be assessed. 

Controlling worker exposure to ENMs is one of the first steps in a risk-based approach to 

responsible development of nanotechnology. NIOSH will increase its effort with private sector 

partners to evaluate the extent of adherence with risk management guidance, with initial focus on 

evaluating the effectiveness of engineering control measures. Significantly more field research is 

needed to address questions raised about possible human health risks in exposed 

nanotechnology workers and to develop guidance for medical screening and prospective 

epidemiologic studies.

NIOSH will continue to work with NNI agencies and a broad range of national and international 

private and public partners to develop research-based information and guidance to protect 

workers involved with ENMs. The results being produced by NIOSH will continue to serve as the 

foundation for meeting the critical NNI research needs related to human hazard and exposure 

assessment, exposure mitigation, risk assessment techniques, risk management practices, and 

human medical surveillance and epidemiology. NIOSH has developed formal collaborations with 

the National Toxicology Program (National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, NIEHS), 

CPSC, DOD, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. It has also developed 

productive informal interactions with additional agencies, including the U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency (EPA), NIST, DOE, and the Food and Drug Administration. 
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National Institutes of Health (NIH)

The National Institutes of Health is the primary Federal agency for conducting and supporting 

medical research. The NIH mission is to seek fundamental knowledge about the nature and 

behavior of living systems and the application of that knowledge to enhance health, lengthen life, 

and reduce the burdens of illness and disability. Toward these ends, NIH leadership realizes that 

advances in nanoscience and nanotechnology have the potential to make valuable contributions 

to biology, medicine, and related disciplines, which in turn could contribute to a new era in 

healthcare. The Federal agencies’ R&D investments, for example, have resulted in advanced 

materials, tools, and nanotechnology-enabled instrumentation that can be used to study and 

understand biological processes in health and disease. NIH-supported R&D efforts, in particular, 

are bringing about new paradigms in the detection, diagnosis, and treatment of common and rare 

diseases, resulting in new classes of nanotherapeutics and diagnostic biomarkers, tests, and 

devices. 

NIH became a participant in the NNI in 2001. The NNI serves as a framework within which NIH can 

work collaboratively with other agencies to address some of the most perplexing challenges in the 

development and application of nanotechnologies for biomedical applications. Through this 

interagency planning, coordination, and communication, scientists are addressing key challenges by:

• Understanding the manner in which nanoscale building blocks and processes integrate 

and assemble into larger systems and how these processes can be precisely controlled to 

achieve predictable outcomes.

• Learning how to design ENMs that can seamlessly and functionally integrate with tissues 

of the body to perform biological functions. 

• Developing “top-down” and “bottom-up” engineering approaches to control properties 

that allow the identification, characterization, and quantification of biological molecules, 

chemicals, and structures involved in early-stage changes or progression in a disease state.

• Engineering complex, theranostic-based nanoparticles and nanodevices to target 

therapies and diagnose the progress of treatments.

• Adopting new materials, nanotechnology-enabled tools, and analytical instruments from 

diverse fields to support medical research. 

NIH continues to support the NNI by stimulating R&D in nanoscience and nanotechnology 

through both intramural and extramural funding activities in all five PCAs, with major financial 

investments in foundational research (PCA 2) and nanotechnology-enabled applications, devices, 

and systems (PCA 3). For more information on specific topics funded by NIH, please visit the NIH 

Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tool at www.report.nih.gov. NIH plays a substantive role in 

developing scientific understanding of how to design ENMs for safe use in manufacturing and in 

medical treatments. The National Cancer Institute (NCI), for example, established the 

Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory, which has developed a comprehensive assay 

portfolio for the assessment of the safety of nanoparticles in in vivo applications, and NIEHS and 

the National Toxicology Program have focused on assessing properties relevant to the chronic 

exposure of workers to ENMs. NIH institutes also support large center grants, program grants, and 

small businesses whose technologies or products are licensed or currently undergoing Phase I–III 

clinical trials.
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Department of Homeland Security (DHS)

DHS interests in nanoscience are primarily focused on the application of nanoscale materials and 

devices that provide enhancements in component technology performance for homeland security 

applications. The applications for the efforts described below are in threat detection for enhanced 

security for aviation, mass transit, and first responders:

• Materials toolbox: These efforts are focused on the development of materials systems that 

allow systematic control of chemical and structural features from molecular scales (functional 

groups) through nano- and microscales. The ability to precisely tune material properties is 

critical for successful development of improved active sensor surfaces and analyte collection 

substrates as well as for development of novel sensing structures and arrays.

• Advanced preconcentrators: The DHS Science and Technology Directorate is currently 

investigating the development of high-performance preconcentrators for use in nextgeneration detection systems. The focus of these efforts is the development of nano- and 

microscale materials that enable radio-frequency and optical control of device temperature. To 

date, several functional prototypes have been demonstrated. Commercialization of these 

devices is currently being pursued.

• Advanced sensing platforms: Work on the development of multimodal carbon nanotube 

sensing platforms continues with industry partners. The emphasis of these efforts is on 

development of manufacturing techniques for low-cost sensor platforms.

Department of the Interior (DOI) / U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)

At USGS, nanotechnology research involves evaluating the effects of nanoparticles at various levels of 

biological organization, from the molecular to the ecosystem level.14 Much of USGS nanotechnology 

research focuses on assessing the occurrence, fate, and effects of naturally occurring and engineered 

chemical contaminants in aquatic environments or on methods for detecting metal nanomaterials. 

Several programs provide information on nanoparticles or other contaminants, including the 

Contaminant Biology Program, the Toxic Substances Hydrology Program,15 the National Research 

Program,16 and the Water Resources Research Institutes.17 The NNI, through regular NSET 

Subcommittee meetings and activities within the NSET working groups, provides mechanisms for 

USGS to share information on nanotechnology research and to collaborate with other agencies.

Department of Justice (DOJ) / National Institute of Justice (NIJ)

The NIJ investment in nanotechnology furthers DOJ’s mission through the sponsorship of research 

that provides objective, independent, evidence-based knowledge and tools to meet the challenges of 

crime and justice, particularly at the state and local levels. New projects are awarded on a competitive 

basis; therefore, total investment may change each fiscal year. However, NIJ continues to view 

nanotechnology as an integral component of its R&D portfolio as applicable to criminal justice needs.

 

14 Details at www.microbiology.usgs.gov/nanotechnology.html. 15 toxics.usgs.gov

16 water.usgs.gov/nrp

17 water.usgs.gov/wrri
THE NNI

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Department of Labor (DOL) / Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

OSHA plays an integral role in nanotechnology by protecting the Nation’s workforce. OSHA 

accomplishes its mission by collaborating and sharing information with other Federal agencies

through NNI activities and NSET Subcommittee meetings. As part of this effort, OSHA’s goal is to 

educate employers on their responsibility to protect workers and to educate workers on safe practices 

in handling ENMs. OSHA is developing guidance and educational materials promoting worker safety 

and health that will be shared with the public directly and through the NNI.

In addition, OSHA is interested in ensuring responsible and sustainable nanotechnology by promoting 

and developing manufacturing processes that take safety and health into consideration from the 

design of manufacturing systems throughout the entire life cycle of the material in use, wherever 

there is potential for worker exposure. To achieve this objective, OSHA is participating in the 

nanomanufacturing NSI and collaborating with EPA and NIOSH to promote sustainable development 

in the manufacturing process. This involves development of nanomanufacturing processes that take 

into account exposure control measures to eliminate or reduce worker exposure from the outset. 

OSHA is also involved in the Nanotechnology Knowledge Infrastructure NSI, participating in 

collaboration with other agencies in creating a robust data and information infrastructure. Sharing 

information on nanotechnology health-related data supports OSHA’s goal to develop materials 

promoting worker safety and health.

Department of State (DOS)

DOS actively participates in the NNI in order to identify and promote multilateral and bilateral 

scientific activities that support U.S. foreign policy objectives, protect national security interests, 

advance economic interests, and foster environmental protection. International scientific collaboration 

enhances existing U.S. research, development, and innovation programs. Nanotechnology’s enormous 

potential to address global challenges relating to the environment, energy, and health renders it an 

ideal subject for collaboration on precompetitive and noncompetitive research. DOS assists NNI 

agencies in establishing partnerships with counterpart institutions abroad by holding regular joint 

committee meetings with representatives from over fifty countries. These meetings are governed by 

binding science and technology agreements that facilitate exchange of scientific results, provide for 

protection and allocation of intellectual property rights and benefit sharing, facilitate access for 

researchers, address taxation issues, and respond to the complex set of issues associated with 

economic development, domestic security, and regional stability. DOS also leads efforts in the Working 

Party on Nanotechnology (WPN) of the OECD, the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals 

Management (SAICM), and other international organizations that support the responsible 

development of nanotechnology.

Department of Transportation (DOT) / Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) 

FHWA sees great promise in the application of nanotechnology to help solve long-term transportation 

research needs in support of DOT’s strategic goals: Safety, Livable Communities, State of Good Repair, 

Economic Competitiveness, and Environmental Sustainability. By strategically investing in focused 

research areas and leveraging investments in nanoscale technology by other NNI partners and Federal 

agencies, industry, and academia, FHWA aims to accelerate the capability to provide safer, more 

efficient, longer-lasting highway transportation systems. FHWA’s Exploratory Advanced Research 
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

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Program is investing in nanoscale research to address key highway research issues in infrastructure, 

safety, operations, and the environment. Nanotechnology promises breakthroughs in multiple areas, 

offering a potential for synergy and benefits across many traditional highway research focus areas.

The development of innovative materials and coatings can deliver significant improvements in 

durability, performance, and resiliency of highway and transportation infrastructure components. 

Nanoscale engineering of traditional transportation infrastructure materials (e.g., steel, concrete, 

asphalt, and other cementitious materials, as well as recycled forms of these materials) offers great 

promise. Developments in nanoscale sensors and devices may provide cost-effective opportunities to 

embed and employ structural health monitoring systems to continuously monitor corrosion, material 

degradation, and performance of structures and pavements under service loads and conditions. In 

addition, these developments might provide multifunctional properties to traditional infrastructure 

materials, such as the ability to generate or transmit energy. Nanoscale sensors and devices may also 

enable a cost-effective infrastructure that communicates with vehicle-based systems to assist drivers 

with tasks such as maintaining lane position, avoiding collisions at intersections, and modifying or 

coordinating travel behavior to mitigate congestion or adverse environmental impacts. Other 

environmental applications include sensors to monitor mobile source pollutants and air, water, and 

soil quality. 

FHWA’s long-term strategy is to continue targeted investment in select areas while building an 

appreciation for highway research needs with NNI agencies and the broader nanoscale research 

community in order to augment longstanding partnerships and make significant progress toward 

improving the Nation’s highway and transportation systems.

Department of the Treasury (DOTreas) 

DOTreas works through the NSET Subcommittee to help the NNI achieve its vision congruent with that 

of DOTreas: to serve the American people and strengthen national security by managing the Federal 

Government’s finances effectively; to promote economic growth and stability; and to ensure the 

safety, soundness, and security of U.S. and international financial systems. DOTreas monitors those 

aspects of developing nanotechnology that could most effectively assist the execution of its role as 

the steward of the U.S. economic and financial systems and as an influential participant in the global 

economy. DOTreas seeks to assess and utilize nanotechnology in the discharge of its responsibilities, 

including advising the President on economic and financial issues, encouraging sustainable economic 

growth, and fostering improved governance in financial institutions. It seeks to harness those aspects 

of nanotechnology R&D that will allow it to better operate and maintain systems that are critical to the 

Nation’s financial infrastructure, such as the production of coin and currency. Interactions with the 

NSET Subcommittee help DOTreas as it endeavors to capture developments in nanoscale science and 

engineering that are changing the parameters of its domestic and international operations, 

particularly those impacting its critical national security-related activities in implementing economic 

sanctions against foreign threats to the United States, identifying and targeting the financial support 

networks of national security threats, improving the safeguards of U.S. financial systems, and creating 

new economic and job opportunities to promote economic growth and stability at home and abroad.
THE NNI

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Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

EPA’s interest in the NNI is to collaborate to better understand the implications and applications of 

ENMs to help protect human health and the environment. EPA’s main interest is to understand how 

ENMs can be designed and used to minimize potential adverse public health or environmental 

impacts. Second, EPA is interested in the potential of using advances in nanotechnology to improve 

the environment, including its use for environmental sensing, remediating pollutants, and for 

developing more environmentally friendly substances. Both interests focus on the sustainable use of 

nanotechnology. 

Nanotechnology offers potentially transformative capabilities for a vast array of products and 

processes, including those that enhance environmental quality and sustainability. To help 

nanotechnology create maximum societal benefits and to minimize its potential environmental 

impacts, EPA collaborates with Federal partners within the NSET Subcommittee, and with international 

organizations such as OECD, to bridge research gaps, address critical issues such as regulatory needs

and test guidelines, and communicate information about nanotechnology to all interested 

stakeholders.

Intelligence Community (IC) / Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) 

There are several agencies within IC that conduct nanotechnology R&D. The National Reconnaissance 

Office (NRO) has an R&D program that focuses on nanoelectronics, nanomaterials, and energy 

generation and storage using nanotechnologies.

In nanoelectronics, both analog and digital, the emphasis is on ultralow power for terrestrial data 

centers and radiation-hardened ultralow power for satellites. Carbon-based nanoelectronics are 

compatible with today’s microelectronics and the foundries that produce them. A major focus going 

forward will be on ultradense, ultralow-power nonvolatile memory for saving power in data centers 

and satellites, replacement for today’s silicon logic, and advanced linear analog nanoelectronics for 

next-generation communications and radar systems. These nanoelectronics will transform today’s 

systems into advanced capabilities that will solve tomorrow’s IC challenges.

ENMs, including carbon-based sheets and threads, will be used to develop advanced ultralight, 

ultrastrong composites for satellites, unmanned aircraft, and advanced body armor. Carbon-based 

threads will be used to develop novel ultralightweight cables and wires for satellites, aircraft, and data 

centers that reduce weight by as much as 80% and deliver more data signals and power than 

conventional copper wires and cables. 

Nanotechnologies are being applied to solar cells to achieve 35% efficiency in the near term and 

develop 40% to 47% efficiencies in the medium term for use in space. With the application of 10 to 

1000 times normal sunlight (concentration), 52% to 61% efficiency can be achieved for terrestrial use, 

as defined by current research. Carbon-based nanomaterials are also being developed for advanced 

lithium-ion batteries with 3 to 5 times more power, more rapid rechargeability, and much lighter 

weight than current lithium ion batteries.

Nanotechnology provides the IC with transformative and game-changing capabilities not achievable 

with conventional electronics, materials, or power technologies, and with greatly reduced size, weight, 

power, and cost. The NSET Subcommittee provides an open forum where agencies can describe their 
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

 18 

nanotechnology portfolios to other agencies, making them aware of progress achieved. It also affords 

the opportunity to collaborate to further accelerate nanotechnology R&D, prototyping, 

nanomanufacturing, in situ and post-product metrology, and final transition to acquisition programs.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

The three prime drivers for NASA’s aerospace R&D activities are to (1) reduce vehicle weight, 

(2) enhance performance, and (3) improve safety, durability, and reliability. Nanotechnology is a tool to 

address each of these drivers. Nanotechnology research at NASA is focused in four areas: engineered 

materials and structures; energy generation, storage, and distribution; electronics, sensors, and 

devices; and propulsion. This research is conducted through a combination of in-house activities at 

NASA research and flight centers, competitively funded research with universities and industry, and 

collaborations with other agencies, universities, and industry. Through the University Research Centers 

Program, NASA has also funded nanotechnology research at minority-serving institutions, including 

the Center for Advanced Nanoscale Materials at the University of Puerto Rico and the High 

Performance Polymers and Composites Center at Clark Atlanta University. A major emphasis of NASA's 

nanotechnology R&D is on transitioning nanotechnology discoveries into mission applications.

NASA has participated in the NNI since its inception and is committed to partnering with other 

participating agencies to identify key technical challenges in nanotechnology R&D, focus resources to 

address these challenges, and accelerate the development of nanotechnology breakthroughs and 

their translation into commercial products.

National Science Foundation (NSF)

NSF supports fundamental nanoscale science and engineering in and across all disciplines. It supports 

formal and informal nanotechnology education and physical research infrastructure in academic 

institutions. It also advances nanotechnology innovation through a variety of translational research 

programs and by partnering with industry, states, and other agencies. 

The NSF nanotechnology investment in 2013 supported over 5,000 active projects, over 30 research 

centers, and several infrastructure networks for device development, computation, and education. It 

impacted over 10,000 students and teachers. Approximately 150 small businesses have been funded 

to perform research and product development in nanotechnology through the SBIR and Small 

Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs. NSF’s nanotechnology research is supported primarily 

through grants to individuals, teams, and centers at U.S. academic institutions. The efforts in team and 

center projects have been particularly fruitful because nanoscale research and education are 

inherently interdisciplinary pursuits, often combining elements of materials science, engineering, 

chemistry, computer science, physics, and biology. 

Fundamental changes envisioned through nanotechnology require a long-term R&D vision. NSF 

sponsored the first initiative dedicated to nanoparticles in 1991 and the 1997–1999 Partnership in 

Nanotechnology program, and it produced the 1999 interagency report Nanotechnology Research 

Directions: Vision for Nanotechnology in the Next Decade,

18 which was adopted as an official NSTC 

document in 2000. NSF continues to push the frontiers of science and technology innovations through 

 

18 www.nano.gov/node/948
THE NNI

 19 

continual interaction with the nanotechnology community, new programs, and ongoing evaluation of 

current investments. The NSF-led study Nanotechnology Research Directions for Societal Needs in 2020

was released in 2010.19 With input from academic, industry, and government experts from over 35 

countries, the report addresses the progress and impact of nanotechnology since 2000 as well as the 

vision and research directions for nanotechnology in the next ten years. Further, convergence of 

nanotechnology with other technologies and areas of application have been analyzed in the NSF-led 

2013 report developed in collaboration with NIH, EPA, DOD, NASA, and the U.S. Department of 

Agriculture (USDA), Convergence of Knowledge, Technology, and Society.

20

NSF supports the NSIs through core programs and new solicitations. NSF requested additional funds in 

2014 for nanomanufacturing to support new concepts for high-rate synthesis and processing of 

nanostructures, nanostructured catalysts, nanobiotechnology methods, and methods to fabricate 

devices, assemble them into systems, and then further assemble them into larger-scale structures of 

relevance to industry. EHS implications of nanotechnology, including development of predictive 

toxicity of nanomaterials and rigorous experiments to develop models for nanomaterial exposures in 

the environment, will be investigated in three dedicated multidisciplinary centers and in over 60 other 

smaller groups. 

NSF also has a focus on addressing education and societal dimensions of nanotechnology. Educationrelated activities include development of materials for schools, curricula for nanoscience and 

engineering, new teaching tools, undergraduate programs, technical training, and public outreach 

programs. The Nanoscale Informal Science Education Network is a national network for 

nanotechnology education public outreach supported by NSF. Research directed at identifying and 

quantifying the broad implications of nanotechnology for society, including social, economic, 

workforce, educational, ethical, and legal implications, is investigated in small groups and in the 

Nanotechnology in Society Network.

Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)

The mission of NRC is to license and regulate the Nation’s civilian use of byproduct, source, and special 

nuclear materials in order to protect public health and safety, promote the common defense and 

security, and protect the environment. NRC’s scope of responsibility includes regulation of commercial 

nuclear power plants; research, test, and training reactors; nuclear fuel cycle facilities; medical, 

academic, and industrial uses of radioactive materials; and transport, storage, and disposal of 

radioactive materials and waste. In addition, NRC licenses the import and export of radioactive 

materials and works to enhance nuclear safety and security throughout the world.

As a regulatory agency, NRC does not typically sponsor fundamental research or product 

development. Rather, NRC is focused in part on confirmatory research to verify the safe application of 

new technologies in the civilian nuclear industry. Currently the agency’s focus with respect to 

nanotechnology is to monitor developments that might be applied within the nuclear industry to help 

NRC carry out its oversight role.

 

19 www.wtec.org/nano2 20 www.wtec.org/NBIC2
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

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U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)

Nanotechnology has the potential to impact all areas that the U.S. Department of Agriculture provides 

leadership on: food, agriculture, natural resources, rural development, nutrition, the environment, and 

related issues. The Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Forest Service (FS), and National Institute of 

Food and Agriculture (NIFA) participate in the NSET Subcommittee to promote coordinated research, 

development, commercialization, education, and outreach on nanoscale science, engineering, and 

technology in support of a variety of applications, including cellulosic and other nano- and 

biomaterials, agricultural production, and human nutrition, as well as food safety and food quality.

USDA also contributes to NNI EHS efforts toward responsible development and deployment of 

nanotechnology.

Agricultural Research Service (ARS)

ARS is USDA’s chief in-house scientific research agency. ARS research leverages science and 

technology, including ENMs and NEPs, to enable substantial improvements in long-term 

agricultural production, in food safety and quality, and in human nutrition. Examples of this 

research include the development of nanorod-based biosensors to rapidly, accurately, and 

selectively identify Salmonella; the incorporation of nanoemulsions, nanoparticles, and 

microfibrils into edible films to develop food products with improved barrier and mechanical 

properties, greater nutritional value, and improved taste; and the use of nano-cantilevers to detect 

toxin molecules with high sensitivity.

Forest Service (FS)

Nanotechnology has enormous promise to bring about fundamental changes in and significant 

benefit from our Nation’s use of renewable resources. For example, cellulose nanomaterials 

derived from trees: (1) are renewable and sustainable; (2) are produced in trees via photosynthesis 

from solar energy, atmospheric carbon dioxide, and water; (3) store carbon; and (4) depending 

upon how long cellulose-based products remain in service, are carbon negative or carbon neutral. 

Cellulosic nanocrystals, for example, are predicted to have strength properties comparable to 

Kevlar, have piezoelectric properties comparable to quartz, and can be manipulated to produce 

photonic structures. The USDA FS, in collaborations with Purdue University, Georgia Institute of 

Technology, the University of Maine, and others, has been conducting research on 

characterization, predictive modeling, surface modification, and development of new applications 

for cellulosic nanomaterials. Current global research directions in cellulose nanomaterials indicate 

that this material could be used for a variety of new and improved product applications, including

lighter and stronger paper and paperboard products; lighter and stronger building materials; 

wood products with improved durability; barrier coatings; body armor; automobile and airplane 

composite panels; electronics; biomedical applications; and replacement of petrochemicals in 

plastics and composites. The U.S. forest products industry, the major supplier and a user of 

cellulose nanomaterials, has actively engaged with NNI agencies and programs via its industry

technology alliance—the Agenda 2020—and via co-organizing workshops. 

Through participation in the NNI and representation on the NSET Subcommittee, FS is partnering 

with other Federal entities (e.g., NIST, NSF, DOE, DOD), industry, and academia to develop the 

precompetitive science and technology critical to the economic and sustainable production and 
THE NNI

 21 

use of new high-value, nanotechnology-enabled forest-based products. Participation in the NNI 

and the NSET Subcommittee has helped create a favorable environment for increased FS 

investment in nanotechnology R&D. FS nanotechnology research has contributed broadly to the 

NNI program component areas with primary emphasis on PCA 1 (Nanotechnology Signature 

Initiatives/Sustainable Nanomanufacturing), PCA 3 (Nanotechnology-Enabled Applications, 

Devices, and Systems), and PCA 4 (Research Infrastructure and Instrumentation), with possible 

future investments in PCA 5 (Environment, Health, and Safety). 

National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)

Established by the 2008 Farm Bill, NIFA serves the Nation’s needs by supporting exemplary 

research, education, and extension to address challenges within its mission area. NIFA’s mission is 

to lead food and agricultural sciences to help create a better future for the Nation and the world. 

NIFA’s current priority areas are (1) global food security, (2) climate change, (3) sustainable 

bioenergy, (4) childhood obesity, and (5) food safety. Nanoscale science, engineering, and 

technology have demonstrated their relevance and great potential to enable revolutionary 

improvements in agriculture and food systems, including plant production and products; animal 

health, production, and products; food safety and quality; nutrition, health, and wellness; 

renewable bioenergy and bio-based products; natural resources and the environment; agriculture 

systems and technology; and agricultural economics and rural communities. 

NIFA’s predecessor agency (Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, or 

CSREES) was among the early participating agencies in the NSET Subcommittee, joining in 2002, 

and that agency (later, NIFA) has actively participated in and contributed to NNI activities ever 

since. The NNI provides a solid platform on which NIFA can effectively explore opportunities in 

nanoscience and nanotechnology to address critical societal challenges facing agriculture and 

food systems through coordination, collaboration, and leveraging resources with other Federal 

agencies. Scientific discoveries and technological breakthroughs inspire agricultural and food 

scientists to seek novel solutions. The extensive infrastructure networks developed by the NNI 

agencies enhance the productivity and expand the capability of agricultural and food science R&D

in academia and industry. NIFA actively contributes to and benefits significantly from its 

participation in the NNI activities to identify research gaps and opportunities through workshops 

and discussions, to support public engagement and communication, to facilitate public–private 

partnerships in close collaboration with industry, and to participate in and promote international 

information exchanges and cooperation. NIFA also supports multiagency joint research efforts of 

common interest and importance as appropriate to its mission, goals, and objectives. The agency’s 

nanotechnology programs have broadly contributed to the NNI, with primary emphasis on

Nanotechnology Signature Initiatives (PCA 1); Foundational Research (PCA 2); NanotechnologyEnabled Applications, Devices, and Systems (PCA 3); and Environment, Health, and Safety (PCA 5). 

NIFA’s SBIR program also supports innovative nanotechnology R&D throughout its broad topic 

areas.
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

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U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC)

The USITC representative attends NSET Subcommittee and working group meetings to keep the 

Commission abreast of current trends and issues related to nanotechnology that may have the 

potential to impact international trade. Upon request, the USITC representative may provide technical 

support to the NSET Subcommittee.
 23 

Goals and Objectives

The NNI vision is supported by the four NNI goals. All four are equally critical to the success of the NNI 

and are interdependent. This interconnection is specifically recognized in the following sections that 

describe shared NNI objectives, organized by NNI goal. Recurring themes that are particularly relevant 

for the realization of these objectives include the need for consensus standards; education and 

training; consideration of ethical, legal, and societal implications; public engagement; and 

environmental, health, and safety research. 

Based on extensive input from internal and external stakeholders, the NNI agencies have specified the 

objectives that follow. To the extent possible, these are specific and measurable, with targeted time 

frames of three to five years unless otherwise indicated. Although not all member agencies are 

responsible for fulfilling all objectives, the Nanoscale, Science, Engineering, and Technology (NSET) 

Subcommittee has identified objectives that are supported by the relevant agencies and that are 

ambitious yet realistic. The Subcommittee has attempted to recognize available resources and 

functional limits while also being far-sighted in terms of focusing on objectives that will accelerate 

innovation and progress toward achieving the NNI goals. NNI agencies also independently continue to 

contribute to the achievement of all four goals through a number of their own activities, which are 

reported on an annual basis in the NNI Supplement to the President’s Budget.21 

The actions and associated resources required to implement the goals of this plan will need to be 

pursued in the context of other U.S. Government priorities. This document is not intended as an 

inherent justification to seek increased budgetary authority; the goals and objectives may be achieved 

through reprioritization and reallocation of existing resources. It is expected that agencies will 

consider this document in their internal prioritization and planning processes.

Goal 1: Advance a world-class nanotechnology research and development 

program. 

NNI agencies continue to expand the boundaries of knowledge and develop technologies through 

comprehensive and focused R&D. The overarching aim of Goal 1 is to advance nanoscience and 

nanotechnology through the implementation of the objectives described below. Progress in R&D will 

depend upon the availability of a skilled workforce, infrastructure, and tools (Goal 3) and will lay the 

foundation for responsible incorporation of nanotechnology into commercial products (Goals 2 and 4).

Goal 1 Objectives

1.1. Support R&D that extends the frontiers of nanotechnology and strengthens the 

intersections of scientific disciplines. 

1.1.1. Extend the frontiers of nanotechnology with a diverse R&D portfolio that includes basic 

scientific research, foundational research, use-inspired research, applications research, and 

technology development. 

 

21 Available at www.nano.gov. 
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

 24 

1.1.2. Strengthen the intersections of scientific disciplines by creating funding opportunities 

specifically targeting unique and interdependent research between disciplines.

1.1.3. Sustain a strategic and complementary research portfolio incorporating intramural and 

extramural programs consisting of single-investigator efforts, multi-investigator and 

multidisciplinary research teams, and centers and networks for focused research.

Nanotechnology offers a paradigm that crosses scientific disciplines and therefore provides a unique 

motivation for exploring the intersections between traditional disciplines. The broad nanotechnology 

R&D portfolio invests at the frontiers and intersections of many areas, including biology, chemistry,

computer science, ecology, engineering, geology, materials science, medicine, physics, and the social 

sciences. Activities targeted toward this goal span a broad continuum, from support for basic and 

foundational research, through use-inspired and applications research, and into technology 

development. The research efforts of the NNI agencies continue to be executed through a balanced 

mix of funding ranging from single-investigator grants to collaborative research teams and networks, 

research centers, and user facilities. Research efforts also include extramural research and research 

within Government laboratories, each of which plays a unique and vital role in the discovery and 

innovation process.

1.2. Identify and support nanoscale science and technology research driven by national 

priorities and informed by active engagement with stakeholders.

1.2.1. Engage with academia, industry, government, and the public to gather input and feedback 

on federally supported research.

1.2.2. Foster stakeholder engagement and collaborations with NNI agencies via means such as 

matching funds, partnerships, consortia, and planning exercises.

1.2.3. Disseminate and communicate nanoscale science and technology success stories and 

current national priorities at public workshops and conferences.

Successful advancement and commercialization of nanotechnology (Goal 2) will depend on the 

scientific quality of research; better understanding of the potential environmental, health, and safety 

implications of nanotechnology; and cognizance of its relevance and competitiveness in the 

marketplace. NNI agencies will continue to work with academia and across industry sectors to gather 

input and feedback on Federal research. Continuous engagement will facilitate the effective transition 

of nanotechnology from discovery to the marketplace, and direct collaborations will establish 

meaningful long-term relationships to advance this field. Furthermore, given the vast body of research 

in nanotechnology supported by NNI agencies, it is incumbent upon these agencies, assisted by the 

National Nanotechnology Coordination Office, to ensure that recent successes and the current 

national priorities are adequately communicated in national forums and scientific conferences.

1.3. Assess the performance of the U.S. nanotechnology R&D program. 

1.3.1. Identify the common attributes of successful research programs and general best practices 

within the NNI agencies and within other domestic and international nanotechnology R&D.
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

 25 

1.3.2. Develop quantitative measures of performance in coordination with existing efforts to 

establish metrics for innovation. 

1.3.3. Explore opportunities to enhance and augment current assessment strategies. 

Nanotechnology is a worldwide enterprise with significant R&D efforts underway in many countries. In 

order to maintain U.S. leadership, it is critical to identify the common attributes that define successful 

nanotechnology research programs. Additionally, NNI agencies will continue to develop clearly 

defined metrics to measure the U.S. R&D program against those of other major economies. Efforts to 

quantitatively measure innovation are already underway in other areas, and the NNI and its agencies 

will leverage this existing work to develop appropriate metrics. Furthermore, opportunities for rapid, 

focused assessments of the NNI will be explored, in order to provide dynamic information exchange to 

enable continual refinement of nanotechnology research programs and rapid adaptation of successful 

approaches. For example, directors of major nanotechnology research centers (both academic and 

government) could be assembled to assess the most recent nanotechnology advances, in addition to 

the strengths and weaknesses of the investment strategies of the NNI agencies. The NNI and its

agencies could also host focused discussions around mutually identified topics of particular interest or 

need to refine their nanotechnology investment strategies. Similarly, these agencies could host 

strategic forums to address emerging topics, such as developing reliable datasets or improving the 

tracking of datasets for scientific impact. These opportunities would serve as a means to establish 

continual dialogue with a diverse range of leading scientists and engineers working at the frontiers of 

nanotechnology.

1.4. Advance a portfolio of Nanotechnology Signature Initiatives (NSIs) that are each supported 

by three or more NNI agencies and address significant national priorities.

1.4.1. Identify potential new NSIs with input from stakeholders.

1.4.2. Conduct annual assessments of the impact and progress of each NSI to determine strategic 

areas of focus and the value of continuing the NSI for an additional year. 

NSIs are topical areas identified by the NNI and its agencies as benefiting greatly from close and 

targeted interagency interactions. The NSIs spotlight key areas of national priority and provide a 

STAR METRICSTM

STAR METRICS (www.starmetrics.nih.gov) is a Federal and research institution collaboration to create a data 

infrastructure and a repository of data and tools that will be useful to assess the impact of Federal R&D 

investments. NIH and NSF are leading the project under the auspices of OSTP, with collaboration from other 

agencies including EPA and the USDA. The goal of STAR METRICS is to provide a better empirical basis for 

science policy through the development of an enabling data infrastructure, which can be used by Federal 

agencies, research institutions, and researchers to document and analyze Federal investments in science. The 

NNI is exploring possibilities for leveraging STAR METRICS and other existing platforms, as well as potential 

future platforms (such as the pilot interagency effort to develop a SciENcv data platform to better link 

federally supported researchers with their science impacts), to assess the impacts of the U.S. nanotechnology 

R&D enterprise. Developing and utilizing better data and tools would enable clearer documentation of the

Nation’s returns on its nanotechnology investments.
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

 26 

mechanism for enhanced collaboration to leverage R&D programs across multiple agencies. Utilizing 

the broad range of funding mechanisms identified in Objective 1.1, the agency activities will be 

coordinated within the NSIs to foster innovation and accelerate nanotechnology development. The 

portfolio of NSIs will be reviewed annually to determine their overall progress and the impact of the 

interactions catalyzed by them. These reviews will also assess each NSI relative to new opportunities to 

ensure that the optimum set of NSIs is supported. 

Goal 2: Foster the transfer of new technologies into products for 

commercial and public benefit. 

Since the inception of the NNI in 2001, significant advances have been made in the development of 

fundamental understanding of nanotechnology phenomena. While nanotechnology has found its way 

into a variety of commercial products (e.g., cosmetics, antimicrobial surfaces and treatments, tires, 

electronics, and healthcare), a continued emphasis on commercialization is needed to fully realize the 

benefits of nanotechnology R&D to the Nation. The purpose of Goal 2 is to establish processes and 

resources to facilitate the responsible transfer of nanotechnology research into practical applications 

and capture its benefits to national security, quality of life, economic development, and job creation.

Several factors are necessary to successfully commercialize any new technology. Scalable, repeatable, 

cost-effective, and high-precision manufacturing methods are required to move the technology from 

the laboratory into commercial products. Investments by both the public and private sectors are 

needed to shepherd technologies to maturity. Maximizing the benefits of nanotechnology 

developments to the U.S. economy requires efforts to remove barriers to global commercialization and 

an understanding of the potential markets for a given product.

The NNI fosters technology transfer by facilitating agency engagement with key industry sectors, 

providing access to the results of federally funded nanotechnology R&D and aiding in the creation of a 

business environment conducive to the responsible development of nanotechnology-enabled 

products (NEPs). Partners in this endeavor include international, regional, state, and local organizations 

that promote nanotechnology development as well as professional societies, trade associations, and 

other nongovernmental organizations.

Goal 2 Objectives

2.1. Assist the nanotechnology-based business community in understanding the Federal 

Government’s R&D funding and regulatory environment.

2.1.1. Disseminate information on supporting sponsors and programs to assist transfer of 

nanotechnology-based technologies into Federal Government acquisition programs. 

2.1.2. Improve public access to informational materials about resources available that support 

nanotechnology commercialization.

2.1.3. Provide informational materials, including points of contact, to explain issues pertinent to 

nanotechnology-enabled products and businesses.
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

 27 

The 2011 Presidential Memorandum on Accelerating Technology Transfer and Commercialization of 

Federal Research in Support of High-Growth Business22 directs Federal agencies “to accelerate 

technology transfer and support private sector commercialization.” NNI agencies recognize the need 

to raise public and business community awareness of Federal Government resources, including 

funding opportunities (e.g., Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology 

Transfer Research programs), user facilities, and other resources, in support of core Administration 

goals. Development and dissemination of relevant materials will facilitate nanotechnology-based 

commercialization and economic development efforts as well as provide cognizance of the Federal 

regulations that may apply to such efforts. For example, the Emerging Technologies Interagency Policy 

Coordination Committee (ETIPC)23 has released two memoranda to the heads of executive 

departments and agencies—one on emerging technologies generally and one on nanotechnology 

specifically—that outline broad principles for regulation and oversight of these technology areas.24,25

Individual agencies have also issued guidance and rulings as needed and appropriate. Small- and 

medium-sized businesses are of particular interest for outreach efforts because they may not have the 

capabilities necessary to easily identify such potentially useful Federal resources and interpret 

applicable regulations. The primary focus of this objective is to provide the business community and 

potential entrepreneurs with useful and reliable information in an easy-to-navigate forum for the 

purpose of increasing awareness of, interest in, and collaboration with federally funded programs 

designed to support nanotechnology.

2.2. Increase focus on nanotechnology-based commercialization and related support for 

public–private partnerships.

2.2.1. Sustain successful initiatives and expand the number of public–private partnerships. 

2.2.2. Evaluate and disseminate information on best practices to advance commercialization of 

U.S.-derived nanotechnologies.

2.2.3. Support U.S. industry in the development of technology “roadmaps” or R&D plans in 

support of public–private partnerships.

2.2.4. Promote development of robust, scalable nanomanufacturing methods with sufficient 

precision to facilitate commercialization.

The NSET Subcommittee and participating agencies appreciate the importance of collaboration 

between Federal agencies, academia, and industry, as well as regional, state, and local organizations in 

facilitating the commercialization of federally funded nanotechnology R&D. Over the years, NNI 

agencies have interacted with key industry sectors to better understand their technology needs and 

to develop public–private partnerships and other collaborative mechanisms to address these needs. 

The NSET Subcommittee has engaged regional, state, and local organizations to explore opportunities 

 

22 www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/10/28/presidential-memorandum-accelerating-technologytransfer-and-commerciali 23 The ETIPC is described more thoroughly in the “Coordination and Assessment” chapter.

24 www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/microsites/ostp/etipc-memo-3-11-2011.pdf 25 www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/inforeg/for-agencies/nanotechnology-regulation-andoversight-principles.pdf
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

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Public–Private Partnerships

The Nanoelectronics Research Initiative (NRI) is an exemplar public–private partnership launched in 2005 to 

collaboratively prioritize and fund university research for the semiconductor industry. NRI, a subsidiary of the 

Semiconductor Research Corporation, leverages expertise and resources from industry (Semiconductor 

Industry Association and the following NRI member companies: GLOBALFOUNDRIES, IBM, Intel Corporation, 

Micron Technology, and Texas Instruments), Federal agencies (NIST and NSF), and State governments 

(Nebraska, New York, and Texas). More information on NRI is available at www.src.org/program/nri. 

NRI supports long-range research toward the discovery of the fundamental building blocks for tomorrow’s 

nanoscale electronics—new devices and circuit architectures for computing—that are viewed as essential to 

continuing advances in performance of information technology. A key aspect of this program is the close 

connection between NRI member companies and the student researchers who will become the innovators 

and leaders of tomorrow’s technology industry.

The current NRI program consists of three multidisciplinary, multi-university research centers (the Institute 

for Nanoelectronics Discovery and Exploration, the Center for NanoFerroic Devices, and the SouthWest 

Academy of Nanoelectronics) that are jointly supported by NIST and the industry members as well as twelve 

joint awards with NSF to Nanoscale Interdisciplinary Research Teams in support of the Nanoelectronics for 

2020 and Beyond NSI.

to collaborate to promote business development and remove the barriers to commercialization of 

NEPs. The NNI will continue these interactions through activities such as workshops, webinars, and 

other events that provide forums for communication and collaboration, and through outreach 

activities under the Nanomanufacturing, Industry Liaison, and Innovation (NILI) Working Group. The 

NSET Subcommittee and participating agencies will also explore the benchmarking of best practices 

from the commercialization of other advanced technologies to identify innovative approaches that 

can be applied to facilitate technology transfer and commercialization of NEPs and to share these 

practices with NNI stakeholders.

Through mechanisms including the NSIs, NNI agencies have collaborated with each other, industry, 

economic development organizations, universities, and community colleges to tackle the technical 

barriers to commercialization of NEPs. In their joint memo on R&D priorities for the fiscal year 2015 

Federal Budget, the directors of the Office of Management and Budget and the Office of Science and 

Technology Policy stressed the importance of nanotechnology R&D, particularly that being conducted 

under the NSIs, to the Administration’s advanced manufacturing agenda. NNI agencies will explore 

ways to strengthen and expand NSI collaborations to advance the state of the art in advanced 

manufacturing and to facilitate commercialization of advanced technologies.

2.3. Promote broader accessibility and utilization of user facilities, cooperative research 

centers, and regional initiatives to accelerate the transfer of nanoscale science from lab to 

market.

2.3.1. Provide economical access to tools and processes, expertise, and training critical to the 

transition from discovery to advanced prototype development.
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

 29 

2.3.2. Support the establishment of self-sustaining cooperative research centers and regional, 

state, and local economic development initiatives for nanotechnology commercialization.

NNI agencies have made considerable investments in the development of unique national facilities to 

support nanotechnology R&D (Goal 3). These investments provide for the development of new 

capabilities and help to maintain the existing infrastructure needed to support both basic research in 

nanotechnology and commercialization activities. NNI agencies will continue to support these 

facilities and provide economical access for industry and university researchers to support both 

commercialization and research. Further efforts to promote nanotechnology commercialization will be 

supported through continued efforts to foster government–university–industry consortia and 

economic development initiatives at the regional, state, and local levels. 

2.4. Actively engage in international activities integral to the development and responsible 

commercialization of nanotechnology-enabled products and processes.

2.4.1. Participate and, where appropriate, lead in the development of international standards for 

nanotechnology.

2.4.2. Engage in bilateral and multilateral collaborations and cooperative activities to further 

nanotechnology-related commercialization, innovation, and trade.

2.4.3. Support forums in which U.S. and international stakeholders can exchange technical 

information and discuss respective market needs, intellectual property rights, and other issues 

relevant to enabling commercialization.

Significant public and private investments in nanotechnology R&D worldwide have led to the 

commercialization of an ever-expanding array of NEPs across a variety of industry sectors. At the 

international level, vibrant and dynamic exchange of information is accompanying the rapid pace of 

global innovation in nanotechnology and the associated knowledge gains. With supply chains 

distributed across multiple countries, NNI agencies will continue to engage early and often in 

international forums that support responsible commercialization and best practices. These include 

organizations that develop international standards, government-to-government collaborations, and 

other activities that bring together stakeholders from the United States and around the world.

Many NNI agencies are already active and lead important international activities. Agencies will 

continue to maintain and strengthen this strategic engagement while balancing budget constraints 

and mission objectives. NNI agencies will also explore means for leveraging public–private 

partnerships to maximize the impact of their participation and strengthen ties with the U.S. private 

sector. NNI agencies’ engagements span a wide range of issues, including the development of 

international standards, exchange of scientific and technical information, and identification of market 

trends. By participating in a variety of forums and partnerships, NNI agencies will proactively address 

nanotechnology-related intellectual property rights as well as environmental, health, and safety (EHS); 

consumer; and societal issues—all of which enable innovation, commercialization, trade, and U.S. 

leadership in strategic and transformative technologies.
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

 30 

International Symposium on Assessing the Economic Impact of Nanotechnology 

Recognizing the importance of linking investments in research to economic and societal development, the 

NNI partnered with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) Working Party 

on Nanotechnology to organize a symposium in March of 2012. Methodologies for measuring economic and 

other impacts of nanotechnology were presented and discussed among the 170 participants from 22 

countries with expertise all along the nanotechnology value chain. Several case studies demonstrated where 

nanotechnology has had a strong impact on specific industries. Associated background papers, 

presentations, videos of plenary sessions, and a synthesis report are available at www.nano.gov/symposium. 

Government Panel Discussion (pictured from left to right): Joseph Molapisi (South Africa); Françoise Roure 

(France); Naoya Kaneko (Japan); Herbert von Bose (EC); Adalberto Fazzio (Brazil); G. V. Ramaraju (India). Not 

pictured: Altaf Carim (U.S.)

Goal 3: Develop and sustain educational resources, a skilled workforce, and 

a dynamic infrastructure and toolset to advance nanotechnology. 

Fundamental to the successful development of nanotechnology is the continued development of the 

infrastructure necessary to support this effort. A substantial investment, strengthened by interagency 

cooperation and collaboration through the NNI, is needed to develop the talent and facilities 

necessary to achieve the other NNI goals of advancing a world-class R&D program (Goal 1), fostering 

the transfer of new technologies into products for commercial and public benefit (Goal 2), and 

supporting responsible development of nanotechnology (Goal 4).

Nanotechnology is emerging amid a transformative phase in education in the United States when 

there is a widely recognized need to improve science, technology, engineering, and mathematics 

(STEM) education. The creation in the United States of a world-leading science and technology 

workforce can be accelerated by nurturing students’ interest in STEM topics. Not only do core STEM

concepts underpin nanoscale science and engineering, but the discovery of emergent properties and 

behaviors at the nanoscale can excite and inspire students to learn about nanotechnology and STEM 

more broadly. Using traditional teaching methods, hands-on training, informal education programs, 

and emerging Internet-based education, innovations in nanotechnology can be exploited as vehicles 

for learning and teaching STEM subjects that some students have traditionally found challenging.

The NNI agencies continue to foster educational programs that develop scientists, engineers, 

technicians, production workers, and laboratory personnel (including academic students and trainees) 
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

 31 

through multidisciplinary academic programs, industrial partnerships, and federally funded R&D 

systems. 

Extensive infrastructure capabilities are critical to moving nanotechnology from the research 

laboratory to production and will continue to be advanced. These capabilities are provided by the 

centers and user facilities, which broadly support R&D on nanomanufacturing, nanoscale 

characterization, synthesis, simulation, and modeling. 

Goal 3 Objectives

3.1. Sustain outreach and informal education programs in order to inform the public about the 

opportunities and impacts of nanotechnology. 

3.1.1. Develop and publish educational and informational materials appropriate for informing the 

public at large, including students.

3.1.2. Establish and maintain mechanisms, such as informational networks, for disseminating and 

collecting educational materials at all relevant educational levels.

The potential of nanotechnology R&D to result in innovative, cross-cutting discoveries and products 

should be harnessed to ignite students’ enthusiasm for STEM topics and careers. Additionally, NNI 

agencies will support a mix of established and novel approaches to engage and inform all segments of 

the public to help them understand the basic principles of nanoscale science. This knowledge will 

allow the public to appreciate the opportunities presented by nanotechnology as well as its potential 

impacts on EHS and its ethical, legal, and societal implications (ELSI) (see Goal 4 for more information 

on EHS and ELSI considerations). Agencies will continue to partner with public and private 

organizations in order to create informal educational materials such as exhibits, brochures, periodicals, 

radio and television programming, and other educational mass media.

3.2. Establish and sustain programs that assist in developing and maintaining a skilled 

nanotechnology workforce.

3.2.1. Develop, publish, and disseminate nanotechnology educational materials for educating 

and training the workforce, appropriate for all relevant education levels, from vocational to 

professional. 

3.2.2. Continue to provide opportunities for practical training experience for students in federally

supported nanotechnology facilities. 

3.2.3. Encourage education about the areas of convergence between nanotechnology and other 

related scientific disciplines, such as biotechnology, information technology, and cognitive 

science.

The demand for technicians and research scientists to work in nanotechnology-related industries is 

expected to increase as research on and commercialization of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) and 

NEPs continues to mature. Given the interdisciplinary nature of nanotechnology, education programs 

should provide opportunities for students to acquire the skills to think and collaborate across 

boundaries in addition to building deep technical knowledge. In order to prepare high school 

graduates for careers in nanotechnology-related industries, the NNI agencies will work collaboratively 
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

 32 

to support the development of K–12 education that incorporates problem-based and integrative 

teaching, where appropriate. With the support of NNI agency-supported centers, colleges and 

universities have been offering undergraduate minors and majors, teacher training, and postgraduate 

programs in nanoscale science and engineering. International standards and best practices (e.g., for 

safe handling of ENMs in the laboratory, as described in Goal 4) will help to inform these 

developments. Information on nanotechnology and nanoscience-based career opportunities and 

workforce needs will support the pursuit of this objective. Online resources should be utilized to 

supplement classroom training and to help disseminate information about careers and formal 

education programs in nanotechnology.

3.3. Provide, facilitate the sharing of, and sustain the physical R&D infrastructure, notably user 

facilities and cooperative research centers.

3.3.1. Establish regular mechanisms to determine the current and future infrastructure needs of 

users and stakeholders of these facilities and centers.

3.3.2. Develop, operate, and sustain advanced tools, infrastructure, and user facilities (including 

ongoing investment, staffing, and upgrades). 

Robust nanotechnology R&D and technical advancement requires the support of state-of-the-art 

physical infrastructure that is widely accessible. As nanotechnology rapidly advances, shared-use 

facilities must continuously refresh their equipment to meet the evolving needs of users from industry, 

academia, and government. Some of the specialized capabilities, equipment, and structures needed 

for nanoscale science R&D are prohibitively expensive for small enterprises and educational 

institutions. Sustained and predictable access to a broad range of state-of-the-art instrumentation and 

facilities for synthesis, processing, fabrication, characterization, modeling, and analysis of 

nanomaterials and nanosystems, including bio-nanosystems, is needed to achieve this objective. In 

many cases, no single researcher or even single institution can justify funding the acquisition of and 

support for all necessary tools, and therefore user facilities that provide access to researchers from 

multiple sectors serve a critical role. Such facilities enable and accelerate commercialization of R&D by 

co-locating a broad suite of necessary nanotechnology tools, maintaining and replacing these tools to 

keep them at the leading edge, and providing expert staff to ensure the most productive use of the 

tools. The facilities also work to create the next generation of nanoscale fabrication methods and 

measurement instruments. Finally, the facilities provide a setting for hands-on training of the next 

generation of nanotechnology researchers and endeavor to create a community of shared ideas by 

mixing researchers from different disciplines and from different sectors, including industry, academia, 

and government.

The extensive infrastructure established by the NNI agencies will be upgraded and sustained based on 

evaluations of the need and capacity requirements. International best practices should be 

incorporated into the current infrastructure, as appropriate. Extensive publicity and dissemination of 

information will help to engage nanotechnology researchers and developers, especially from small 

and medium enterprises, to ensure that this infrastructure is accessible to all and well utilized.
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

 33 

NNI User Facilities: Providing Access to Nanotechnology Expertise and Infrastructure

Several Federal agencies operate nanotechnology user facilities, with access rules, costs, and provisions for 

proprietary research determined by the individual facilities and their funding agencies.

The National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network (NNIN) is an integrated, networked partnership of user 

facilities, supported by the NSF, serving the needs of nanoscale science, engineering, and technology. The 

NNIN sites provide access to nanofabrication and nanocharacterization tools and operate on a fee-based, 

open-access model, subject to review for technical feasibility. NSF also supports the Network for 

Computational Nanotechnology, which provides simulation services and educational material through 

nanoHUB.org, operating as an open-source, open-access "virtual" user facility.

DOE operates five Nanoscale Science Research Centers (NSRCs), which are available to the research 

community subject to peer review and merit-based selection. Nonproprietary research projects provide 

users with access to NSRC and related facilities at no cost. Proprietary research projects are conducted on a 

cost-recovery basis.

Within DOC, the NIST Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology (CNST) provides rapid access to the tools 

needed to make and measure nanostructures. These tools are provided to anyone who needs them, both 

inside and outside NIST, with a particular emphasis on helping industry. 

NCI's Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory (NCL) offers characterization and safety testing of 

nanoparticles intended for cancer therapies or diagnostics. Following a review process, services are provided 

at no cost to the submitting investigator.

For more information, see

www.nano.gov/userfacilities. 

The Center for Nanoscale Science and 

Technology

Source: National Institute of Standards and 

Technology
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

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Engineered Nanomaterial and Nanotechnology-Enabled Product Life Cycle Considerations

Human and environmental exposures to ENMs can occur at all life cycle stages of an NEP.

Adapted from the 2011 NNI Environmental, Health, and Safety Research Strategy, 

www.nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/nni_2011_ehs_research_strategy.pdf.

Goal 4: Support responsible development of nanotechnology.

Realization of the potential benefits of nanotechnology for human, social, and economic well-being,

and for the environment, requires that responsible development of nanotechnology—assessment and 

management of potential risks—be integrated into all aspects of the field, from world-class R&D

(Goal 1) to commercialization of NEPs (Goal 2). Responsible development is a fundamental component 

of all three objectives in Goal 3. Research in support of Goal 4 will help address the concerns of many

stakeholder groups that are dedicated to protecting humans and the environment.

In 2011, the NNI developed, with input from stakeholders, a nanotechnology-related environmental, 

health, and safety (nanoEHS) research strategy with a broad, multi-agency perspective.26 That 

document fully supports the Goal 4 objectives and details specific research needs in six interrelated 

and synergistic nanoEHS areas: (1) a nanomaterial measurement infrastructure coupled with 

(2) predictive modeling and informatics that provide accurate and reproducible data on (3) human 

exposure, (4) human health, and (5) the environment essential for science-based (6) risk assessment and 

management of ENMs and NEPs. The NNI agencies, individually and collaboratively, will continue to

provide information on progress toward addressing these research needs.

Consideration of life cycle issues of ENMs and NEPs is a key component of all four objectives described 

below. Advances in these objectives require coordinated efforts involving multidisciplinary, 

multistakeholder national and international teams.

 26 www.nano.gov/node/681
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

 35 

Goal 4 Objectives

4.1. Support the creation of a comprehensive knowledge base for evaluation of the potential 

risks and benefits of nanotechnology to the environment and to human health and safety. 

4.1.1. Continue to identify gaps and prioritize needs for relevant knowledge through active 

stakeholder engagement, including with industry and regional, state, and local initiatives.

4.1.2. Facilitate the development of an informatics-based structure for knowledge sharing that 

includes a compendium of existing knowledge and mechanisms to incorporate new knowledge.

4.1.3. Promote the development and validation of measurement tools and decision-making 

models to enable hazard and exposure quantification for human and environmental risk 

assessment and management.

4.1.4. Participate in international efforts, particularly those aimed at generating best practices and 

consensus standards.

Science-based risk assessment and management of ENMs and NEPs is predicated on the broad 

availability of a comprehensive knowledge base that includes validated data, methods, protocols and 

assays, reference materials and consensus standards, and interpretative and predictive models. Such a 

knowledge base is also essential for the development of beneficial nanotechnology applications for 

society and the environment. There is a substantial and rapidly growing body of knowledge on ENM 

and NEP characterization, hazards, and exposure that needs to be collected, analyzed, organized, and 

archived in an informatics-based structure to facilitate sharing and use of information. The 

development of broadly applicable, accessible, and validated measurement tools that enable the 

generation of accurate and reproducible data remains a high-priority research area. Such tools provide 

confidence in quantifying hazards, exposure, and ultimately risk, all of which are critical to evaluating 

the safety of NEPs. Such safety evaluations will accelerate innovation and commercialization of NEPs 

and support science-based regulatory actions to protect human health and the environment. 

Decision-making models that are flexible enough to integrate limited amounts of data will accelerate 

and advance risk assessment and management. The NNI agencies will continue to play a strong 

participatory and, where appropriate, leading role in international activities to develop consensus 

standards and in other international activities. Such consensus standards, along with best practices, 

provide essential guidance to policy-makers and regulators.

Specific research areas for increased emphasis that have been identified collectively by NNI agencies 

include sustainability (Objective 4.4), high-throughput screening tools, environmental fate and 

transport, tools for risk assessment and management, dose metrics, and human and environmental 

health monitoring. Another high-priority need is a library of well-characterized ENMs available for 

testing by researchers and for use in international interlaboratory studies. 

4.2. Create and employ means for timely dissemination, evaluation, and incorporation of 

relevant EHS knowledge and best practices.

4.2.1. Explore new avenues to engage with a broader group of stakeholders, to communicate NNI 

research progress, and to share technical information.
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

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4.2.2. Promote multistakeholder activities to evaluate EHS concerns such as human and 

environmental exposures to ENMs and NEPs.

4.2.3. Participate in coordinated international efforts focused on sharing data, guidance, and best 

practices for environmental and human risk assessment and management.

NanoEHS is a multidisciplinary research area of importance to a large and diverse group of 

stakeholders. Thus, it is a challenge to engage, communicate, and share information with stakeholders

who have varying concerns and levels of EHS knowledge. Addressing this challenge requires 

expanded use of modern approaches to disseminate information, such as popular social media tools, 

and enhanced awareness and new functionality of key websites, notably www.nano.gov. Another 

approach is enhanced communication of individual NNI agencies’specific research priorities, activities, 

and interagency collaborations. Advances in the evaluation of specific EHS concerns are enabled by 

increased participation of diverse stakeholders in existing evaluation activities as well as by initiation 

of new activities. The NNI agencies will continue to participate in, and where appropriate, lead 

international efforts focused on sharing information, including safety data, pertinent to risk 

assessment and management. 

4.3. Develop the national capacity to identify, define, and responsibly address concepts and 

challenges specific to the ethical, legal, and societal implications (ELSI) of nanotechnology.

4.3.1. Support the creation of a comprehensive knowledge base for ELSI and the development of

an ELSI infrastructure.

4.3.2. Promote awareness and education of ELSI among relevant stakeholders (including

manufacturers, regulators, nongovernmental organizations, workers, and the public). 

4.3.3. Foster deliberative interactions, such as public forums, among relevant stakeholders 

concerning national and global ELSI.

Addressing ELSI in a proactive manner is critical to ensure public trust in nanotechnology and to 

promote innovation and commercialization of NEPs. The first step in addressing ELSI is to build a 

comprehensive knowledge base that includes a compendium of ELSI experts, results from societal 

dimensions research, workshop reports, patents, and best practices to approaching ELSI issues. Such a 

knowledge base relies on support from an enhanced ELSI infrastructure composed of networks, 

repositories, and centers for advancing the collection, dissemination, and preservation of societal 

dimensions research on nanotechnology for both the research community and public audiences. To 

increase stakeholder awareness and education concerning ELSI issues, appropriate and relevant ELSI 

knowledge will be disseminated to myriad stakeholders having varying levels of ELSI 

knowledge. Expanded opportunities and new approaches for deliberative interactions among 

stakeholder groups, which are numerous and diverse, will be developed and implemented.

4.4. Incorporate sustainability in the responsible development of nanotechnology. 

4.4.1. Encourage the development of ENMs that are safer and more sustainable alternatives to

materials—nanoscale and otherwise—that are now in use. 

4.4.2. Promote the design and development of safe and environmentally benign manufacturing 

and end-of-life processes for ENMs and NEPs.
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

 37 

4.4.3. Support R&D on nanotechnology with beneficial applications toward human health and the 

environment.

Sustainability was first illustrated conceptually in 1987 in a two-dimensional Venn diagram as the 

intersection of society, the economy, and the environment.27 Materials sustainability, as illustrated 

below in a more complex, three-dimensional rendition of the concept, encompasses many global 

challenges of growing societal, economic, and environmental importance: material, water, and air 

management; green manufacturing; environmental stewardship; and renewable and clean energy 

sources.28 Responsible development of nanotechnology must include consideration of these 

sustainability challenges in the design of manufacturing and end-of-life processes for ENMs and NEPs. 

New research will be directed at developing ENMs that are more sustainable alternatives to largerscale materials currently used in myriad processes and products, and at integrating sustainability in 

the design, development, and manufacture of ENMs and NEPs.

On the other hand, nanotechnology has great potential to address societal, economic, and 

environmental sustainability needs. Some of the beneficial applications that nanotechnology could 

provide in support of sustainability are ENMs for more efficient generation and use of energy, water 

purification, production of food and bio-based industrial and commercial products, and remediation 

of environmental contaminants. New research will develop these and other nanotechnology 

applications for widespread positive impact on human health and the environment.

 

27 Barbier, E. "The Concept of Sustainable Economic Development." Environmental Conservation, 14(2): 101–110. 

(1987).

28 Materials for Sustainable Development, MRS Bulletin, 37(4), 303-308 (2012).

Sustainability

The development of sustainable ENMs,

NEP manufacturing, and end-of-life

processes must incorporate societal,

economic, and environmental

considerations. 

Source: Martin L. Green, NIST; figure adapted from“Materials for Sustainable Development”, MRS Bulletin 

37(4), 304 (2012).

 39 

Program Component Areas 

Overview 

Program component areas (PCAs) are major subject areas under which are grouped related 

nanotechnology R&D projects and activities. They provide an organizational framework for 

categorizing the investments of the NNI agencies. The statutory framework for Federal 

nanotechnology research and development includes a requirement that PCAs be established and 

that agencies track the spending associated with each PCA.29,30 The Nanoscale Science, Engineering, 

and Technology (NSET) Subcommittee, acting on behalf of the National Science and Technology 

Council, defines and establishes PCAs such that their planning, coordination, collaboration, 

investment, and progress are considered critical to achieving the NNI goals and realizing its vision. 

The PCAs are clearly correlated to the goals and major objectives of the NNI and provide a means to 

track both NNI agencies’ investments and progress. The investments and major changes related to 

each PCA are reported in the annual NNI Supplement to the President’s Budget,31 augmenting and 

complementing reporting on technical and other progress associated with the NNI goals and 

objectives. 

The PCAs that were established in the 2004 NNI Strategic Plan and tracked for spending since fiscal 

year 2006 have served the Initiative well and provided a valuable means to report both investment 

and progress. The NSET Subcommittee recently concluded that a significant revision of the PCAs was 

needed to accommodate the maturation of the Initiative, the enhanced emphasis on applications, 

and the greater participation by agencies and communities that are not focused primarily on R&D. In 

particular, the agency representatives believe that the Nanotechnology Signature Initiatives (NSIs) 

have the attributes intended for PCAs—“specific priorities and technical goals that reflect the goals 

and priorities established for the Program”32—and should be formally included for planning, 

reporting, and tracking purposes. Furthermore, the NSET Subcommittee determined that revision 

and consolidation of the previous PCAs was needed. The new PCAs are more broadly strategic, fully 

inclusive, and consistent with Federal research categories. They also eliminate some areas of overlap 

and redundancy that had proven problematic, while correlating well with the NNI goals and highlevel objectives. The new PCAs will be implemented as part of the fiscal year 2015 planning and will 

be reported on in the NNI Supplement to the President’s 2015 Budget. Table 2 presents the new PCAs. A 

comparison and cross-mapping of the new and former PCAs is included in Appendix C. 

 

29 15 USC § 7501 (c) (2) & (d) (1), (2)

30 The text that describes each PCA below is as established for formal collection of budget data. 31 Available at www.nano.gov. 32 15 USC § 7501 (c) (2)
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

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Table 2: Program Component Areas Defined for Fiscal Year 2015

1. Nanotechnology Signature Initiatives (NSIs)

Nanotechnology for Solar Energy Collection and Conversion

Sustainable Nanomanufacturing

Nanoelectronics for 2020 and Beyond

Nanotechnology Knowledge Infrastructure (NKI)

Nanotechnology for Sensors and Sensors for Nanotechnology

2. Foundational Research

3. Nanotechnology-Enabled Applications, Devices, and Systems

4. Research Infrastructure and Instrumentation

5. Environment, Health, and Safety

1. Nanotechnology Signature Initiatives33

NSIs serve to spotlight topical areas that exhibit particular promise, existing effort, and significant 

opportunity, and that bridge across multiple Federal agencies. They are intended to be dynamic, with 

topical areas rotating and evolving over time. This category includes foundational research and 

nanotechnology-enabled applications, devices, and systems within each NSI, as appropriate. 

Instrumentation that is specifically developed in support of a confined topical area covered by one of 

the NSIs is included here, but otherwise, the development or acquisition of more broadly applicable 

instrumentation (as well as resources devoted to facilities) falls under the separate PCA on Research 

Infrastructure and Instrumentation. Most research on Environment, Health, and Safety falls within the 

separate PCA described below, but activities directly pertinent to specific NSIs are reported in this 

section instead. Note that the NSIs are centered on focused thrust areas as described below, and that 

activity falling outside these areas is better characterized under other PCAs.

Nanotechnology for Solar Energy Collection and Conversion: Contributing to Energy Solutions for the 

Future

Enhancing understanding of energy conversion and storage phenomena at the nanoscale, 

improving nanoscale characterization of electronic properties relevant to solar energy, and 

utilization of the unique physical phenomena that occur on the nanoscale to help overcome 

current performance barriers and substantially improve the collection and conversion of solar 

energy. This NSI has three thrust areas: (1) improving photovoltaic solar electricity generation; 

(2) improving solar thermal energy generation and conversion; and (3) improving solar-to-fuel 

conversions.

 

33 Brief descriptions of the scopes of the current NSIs, as used for consistent collection of budget data, are 

presented here; more extensive information about the NSIs is provided following the summary PCA descriptions.
PROGRAM COMPONENT AREAS

 41 

Sustainable Nanomanufacturing: Creating the Industries of the Future

Establishing manufacturing technologies for economical and sustainable integration of nanoscale 

building blocks into complex, large-scale systems by supporting product, tool, and process design 

informed by and adhering to the overall constraints of safety, sustainability, and scalability. This 

NSI specifically focuses at this time on high-performance structural carbon-based nanomaterials, 

optical metamaterials, and cellulosic nanomaterials. The nanomanufacturing NSI has two thrust 

areas: (1) design of scalable and sustainable nanomaterials, components, devices, and processes; 

and (2) nanomanufacturing measurement technologies.

Nanoelectronics for 2020 and Beyond

Discovery and use of novel nanoscale fabrication processes and innovative concepts to produce 

revolutionary materials, devices, systems, and architectures to advance the field of 

nanoelectronics. The nanoelectronics NSI has five thrust areas: (1) exploring new or alternative 

“state variables” for computing; (2) merging nanophotonics with nanoelectronics; (3) exploring 

carbon-based nanoelectronics; (4) exploiting nanoscale processes and phenomena for quantum 

information science; and (5) expanding the national nanoelectronics research and manufacturing 

infrastructure network.

Nanotechnology Knowledge Infrastructure (NKI): Enabling National Leadership in Sustainable Design

This NSI has four thrust areas that focus efforts on cooperative interdependent development of (1) 

a diverse collaborative community; (2) an agile modeling network coupling experimental basic 

research, modeling, and applications development; (3) a sustainable cyber-toolbox for 

nanomaterials design; and (4) a robust digital nanotechnology data and information 

infrastructure.

Nanotechnology for Sensors and Sensors for Nanotechnology: Improving and Protecting Health, 

Safety, and the Environment

The two thrust areas for this NSI are to: (1) develop and promote adoption of new technologies 

that employ nanoscale materials and features to overcome technical barriers associated with 

conventional sensors; and (2) develop methods and devices to detect and identify engineered 

nanomaterials (ENMs) across their life cycles in order to assess their potential impact on human 

health and the environment.

2. Foundational Research

Discovery and development of fundamental knowledge pertaining to new phenomena in the 

physical, biological, and engineering sciences that occur at the nanoscale. Elucidation of scientific and 

engineering principles related to nanoscale structures, processes, and mechanisms. Research aimed at 

discovery and synthesis of novel nanoscale and nanostructured materials and at a comprehensive 

understanding of the properties of nanomaterials ranging across length scales, and including interface 

interactions. Research directed at identifying and quantifying the broad implications of 

nanotechnology for society, including social, economic, ethical, and legal implications.
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3. Nanotechnology-Enabled Applications, Devices, and Systems

R&D that applies the principles of nanoscale science and engineering to create novel devices and 

systems, or to improve existing ones. Includes the incorporation of nanoscale or nanostructured 

materials and the processes required to achieve improved performance or new functionality, including 

metrology, scale up, manufacturing technology, and nanoscale reference materials and standards. To 

meet this definition, the enabling science and technology must be at the nanoscale, but the 

applications, systems, and devices themselves are not restricted to that size. 

4. Research Infrastructure and Instrumentation

Establishment and operation of user facilities and networks, acquisition of major instrumentation, 

workforce development, and other activities that develop, support, or enhance the Nation’s physical or 

human infrastructure for nanoscale science, engineering, and technology. Includes R&D pertaining to 

the tools needed to advance nanotechnology research and commercialization, including nextgeneration instrumentation for characterization, measurement, synthesis, and design of materials, 

structures, devices, and systems. While student support to perform research is captured in other 

categories, dedicated educational and workforce efforts ranging from curriculum development to 

advanced training are included here as resources supporting the human infrastructure of the NNI.

5. Environment, Health, and Safety

R&D primarily directed at understanding the environmental, health, and safety impacts of 

nanotechnology development and corresponding risk assessment, risk management, and methods for 

risk mitigation.

Nanotechnology Signature Initiatives 

In order to accelerate nanotechnology development in key areas of national importance, the Federal 

agencies participating in the NNI and the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) identify 

topics that may be more rapidly advanced through enhanced interagency coordination and focused 

investment. The NSIs provide a spotlight on these critical areas and define the shared vision of the 

participating agencies to accelerate the advancement of nanoscale science and technology from 

research through commercialization.

The NSIs are developed in the context of all four NNI goals and are intended to genuinely affect the 

agency budget process and dramatically improve ground-level functional coordination between 

agencies. Inherently interdisciplinary, these R&D efforts benefit greatly from coordinated planning and 

collaboration. By combining the expertise, capabilities, and resources of appropriate Federal agencies, 

the NSIs accelerate research, development, or insertion and overcome challenges to application of 

nanotechnology-enabled products (NEPs). Each contributing agency is committed to coordinating 

research to achieve the expected outcomes defined in the NSI white papers34 in order to avoid 

duplication of effort and to maximize the return on the Nation’s research investments. 

The NSIs are intended to spotlight areas over a limited time period, depending on the needs of the 

specific topic. Furthermore, to enable the focused effort required for the success of the NSIs, a limited 

 

34 Available at www.nano.gov/signatureinitiatives. 
PROGRAM COMPONENT AREAS

 43 

number will be active at any one time. New topics for consideration may come from stakeholder 

suggestions, review committee recommendations, evolving Presidential priorities, and/or agency 

input. Topics of interest will be further developed into proposals by an interagency group represented 

by at least three agencies and presented to the NSET Subcommittee. The NNI agencies and OSTP 

select NSI areas based on alignment with national scientific, economic, and environmental priorities; 

potential impact on the advancement of nanoscale science and technology; and need for enhanced 

interagency coordination and collaboration (for example, areas that cannot be adequately addressed 

by a single agency). 

The interagency groups supporting each NSI identify its thrust areas (which may evolve as the 

initiatives develop), R&D targets, and expected near- and long-term outcomes. Participating agency 

representatives identify programs, resources, and capabilities in their agencies that can contribute to 

the goals of the NSI and leverage the programs, resources, and capabilities of the other agencies

involved in that NSI. Communities of interest among the Federal participants are established through 

enhanced communication and identify opportunities for joint solicitations or other multi-agency 

collaboration in support of the NSI goals. The broader community is engaged through webinars, 

workshops, technical sessions embedded in existing conferences, and other events as appropriate. 

Such events aim to raise awareness and build a broader community of interest that includes not only 

the Federal participants, but also those in academia and industry engaged in research, development, 

and commercialization efforts, such as grantees and other stakeholders. Well-established communities 

of interest enable leveraging of public and private activities to further accelerate progress and enable 

sustained endeavors beyond the duration of individual NSIs. 

The NSET Subcommittee provides continuous oversight of the NSIs and is provided with a monthly 

update by the National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO). The NSIs are highly individual, 

and the activities depend strongly on the nature of the research area and what is required to advance 

the specific goals as defined in each white paper. The NSET Subcommittee and OSTP may decide to 

transition individual NSIs out of the spotlight based on a number of factors that may include the 

realization of identified goals and outcomes, the emergence of a strong community of interest or 

public–private partnerships ready to lead coordination efforts, the advancement of the essential 

science and technology to a stage more appropriately led by the private sector, or in response to

evolving national priorities. 

The NSET Subcommittee, in collaboration with OSTP, announced three NSI topic areas in February 

2010: solar energy, nanomanufacturing, and nanoelectronics. Two additional areas—sensors and 

informatics—were added in calendar year 2012. The Subcommittee continues to examine other 

potential areas of nanoscale science and technology that may benefit from similar close coordination. 

A summary of each of the five NSIs is provided below. Additional information and the NSI white papers 

are available at www.nano.gov/signatureinitiatives. 
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

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Nanotechnology for Solar Energy Collection and Conversion 

Collaborating agencies engaged in this NSI include DOC (NIST), DOD, DOE, IC (ODNI), NASA, NSF, and 

USDA (NIFA). 

Solar energy is a promising energy source that has the potential to reduce U.S. dependence on fossil 

fuels. New innovations and fundamental scientific breakthroughs are required, however, to accelerate 

the development of solar energy technologies that are economically competitive with conventional 

fossil fuels. Agencies participating in the NNI have identified a number of physical phenomena where 

nanotechnology may play a critical role in overcoming current performance barriers to substantially 

improve the collection and conversion of solar energy.

Certain ENMs and nanostructures have been shown to enhance the absorption of light, increase the 

conversion of light to electricity, and provide better thermal storage and transport. Nanostructured 

artificial photosynthetic systems mimicking those found in nature will be important for the conversion 

of solar energy into chemical fuels. A deeper theoretical understanding of conversion and storage 

phenomena at the nanoscale, improvements in the nanoscale characterization of electronic 

properties, and developments that enable economical nanomanufacturing of robust devices will be 

critical to exploiting the benefits of nanotechnology for solar energy. Product lifetime and reliability of 

technologies incorporating nanotechnology must also meet or exceed the performance of 

conventional solar technologies. 

The goals of the solar NSI are to enhance understanding of conversion and storage phenomena at the 

nanoscale, improve nanoscale characterization of electronic properties, and help enable economical 

nanomanufacturing of robust devices. This NSI currently has three thrust areas: (1) improve 

photovoltaic solar electricity generation; (2) improve solar thermal energy generation and conversion; 

and (3) improve solar-to-fuel conversions.

Sustainable Nanomanufacturing: Creating the Industries of the Future 

Collaborating agencies engaged in this NSI include DHHS (NIH and NIOSH), DOC (NIST), DOD, DOE,

DOL (OSHA), EPA, IC (ODNI), NASA, NSF, and USDA (FS). 

This NSI is designed to develop new technologies for the manufacture of advanced materials, devices, 

and systems based on nanoscale building blocks and components, and for their economical and 

sustainable integration into complex, large-scale systems. The nanomanufacturing NSI has two thrust 

areas: (1) design of scalable and sustainable ENMs, components, devices, and processes; and 

(2) nanomanufacturing measurement technologies. This NSI currently targets three classes of 

materials—high-performance structural carbon-based nanomaterials, optical metamaterials, and 

cellulosic nanomaterials—that have the potential for significant economic impact in multiple industry 

sectors. 

The long-term vision for nanomanufacturing is to create flexible, “bottom-up” or ”top-down/bottomup” continuous assembly methods to construct elaborate systems of complex nanodevices. 

Furthermore, these systems by design will reduce overall environmental and health impacts over their 

full life cycles. This NSI is developing the foundation for achieving this vision by establishing 

sustainable industrial-scale manufacturing of functional systems with relatively limited complexity 

based on ENMs designed to have specific properties. Advances in several areas are required to move
PROGRAM COMPONENT AREAS

 45 

beyond laboratory-specific demonstrations: production must be scaled up to a commercially viable 

throughput and yield; the generation, manipulation, and organization of nanostructures must be 

accomplished in a precise, controlled, and sustainable manner; and final NEPs must perform to 

specification over their expected lifetimes without the release of potentially harmful ENMs. The 

availability of high-throughput, inline metrology to enable closed-loop process control and quality 

assurance is a critical prerequisite for the development of cost-effective nanomanufacturing. To this 

end, this NSI is focused directly on the development of inexpensive, rapid, and accurate sensing and 

measurement techniques.

Nanoelectronics for 2020 and Beyond 

Collaborating agencies engaged in this NSI include DOC (NIST), DOD, DOE, IC (ODNI), NASA, and NSF. 

The semiconductor industry is a key driver for U.S. and global economic growth and has contributed 

significantly to the productivity gains experienced over the past several decades. These gains are due, 

in part, to the continuous miniaturization enabled by advances in materials science, microelectronics 

design and fabrication, and manufacturing, resulting in ever smaller, faster, and more affordable 

devices. As length scales of electronic devices approach atomic dimensions, current architectures are 

reaching physical limits, and new methods for storing and manipulating information must be 

developed for miniaturization to continue. Further reductions in device dimensions are important to 

increase processing speed, reduce device switching energy, increase system functionality, and reduce 

manufacturing cost per bit.

Researchers are pursuing a variety of approaches to provide the scientific bases to overcome the 

fundamental limitations that exist in the scaling of traditional electronics. Nanoscale science, 

engineering, and technology will play a significant role and will likely transform the very nature of 

electronics and the processes by which electronic devices are manufactured. Rapidly reinforcing 

domestic R&D successes in these arenas could establish a U.S. domestic manufacturing base that will 

dominate 21st century electronics commerce. The goal of this NSI is to accelerate the discovery and use 

of novel nanoscale fabrication processes and innovative concepts to produce revolutionary materials, 

devices, systems, and architectures to advance the field of nanoelectronics. 

The nanoelectronics NSI currently has five thrust areas: (1) exploring new or alternative “state variables” 

for computing; (2) merging nanophotonics with nanoelectronics; (3) exploring carbon-based 

nanoelectronics; (4) exploiting nanoscale processes and phenomena for quantum information science; 

and (5) expanding the national nanoelectronics research and manufacturing infrastructure network.

Nanotechnology Knowledge Infrastructure: Enabling National Leadership in Sustainable Design

Collaborating agencies engaged in this NSI include CPSC, DHHS (FDA, NIH, and NIOSH), DOC (NIST), 

DOD, DOL (OSHA), EPA, NASA, and NSF. 

Nanotechnology has a vital role in providing solutions to global challenges by generating and 

applying new multidisciplinary knowledge of nanoscale phenomena and ENMs, structures, and NEPs. 

The data underlying this new knowledge base are vast, disconnected, and challenging to integrate 

into the broad scientific body of knowledge. Nanoinformatics is the science and practice of 

developing and implementing effective mechanisms for the nanotechnology community to collect, 

validate, store, share, mine, analyze, model, and apply nanotechnology information. Nanoinformatics 
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

 46 

is integrated throughout the entire nanotechnology landscape, impacting all aspects of research, 

development, and application. An improved nanoinformatics infrastructure is critical to the 

sustainability of our national nanotechnology proficiency by improving the reproducibility and 

distribution of experimental data and by promoting the development and validation of tools and 

models to transform data into information and applications. A focused national emphasis on 

nanoinformatics will provide a strong basis for the rational design of ENMs and NEPs, prioritization of 

research, and assessment of risk throughout NEP life cycles and across sectors that include energy; 

environment, health, and safety (EHS); medicine; electronics; transportation; and national security. 

The goal of the Nanotechnology Knowledge Infrastructure (NKI) NSI is to provide a community-based, 

solutions-oriented knowledge infrastructure to accelerate nanotechnology discovery and innovation. 

This NSI currently has four thrust areas that focus efforts on cooperative interdependent development 

of: (1) a diverse collaborative community; (2) an agile modeling network for multidisciplinary 

intellectual collaboration that effectively couples experimental basic research, modeling, and 

applications development; (3) a sustainable cyber-toolbox to enable effective application of models 

and knowledge to the design of ENMs; and (4) a robust digital nanotechnology data and information 

infrastructure to support effective data sharing, collaboration, and innovation across disciplines and 

applications.

The NKI Signature Initiative and the Materials Genome Initiative35 have common themes, and through 

coordination activities, productive and open communication exists at the leadership level and among 

the agency representatives. Strong collaboration and interaction also exists between the NKI and 

other related activities, including public–private efforts such as the community coalition of 

nanotechnology and informatics practitioners steering the Nanoinformatics Roadmap effort36 and 

associated workshops in 2010, 2011, and 2012.37 

Nanotechnology for Sensors and Sensors for Nanotechnology: Improving and Protecting 

Health, Safety, and the Environment

Collaborating agencies engaged in this NSI include CPSC, DHHS (FDA, NIH, and NIOSH), DOC (NIST), 

DOD, EPA, NASA, NSF, and USDA (NIFA). 

Nanotechnology-enabled sensors are providing new solutions in physical, chemical, and biological sensing 

that enable increased detection sensitivity, specificity, and multiplexing capability in portable devices for a 

wide variety of health, safety, and environmental assessments. Compelling drivers for the development of 

nanosensors include the global distribution of agricultural and manufacturing facilities, creating an urgent 

need for sensors that can rapidly and reliably detect and identify the source of pollutants, adulterants, 

pathogens, and other threat agents at any point in the supply chain. The increasing burden of chronic 

diseases such as cancer and diabetes on the aging U.S. population requires improved sensors to identify 

early-stage disease and inform disease management. Although several new high-performance 

nanosensors have demonstrated rapid response and increased sensitivity at reduced size, translation of 

these devices to the commercial market is impeded by issues of reliability, reproducibility, and robustness. 

 

35 www.whitehouse.gov/mgi

36 Please refer to www.nanoinformatics.org/nanoinformatics/index.php/Nanoinformatics:Roadmap_2020. 37 See www.nanoinformatics.org/2010/overview and links therein.
PROGRAM COMPONENT AREAS

 47 

Furthermore, the rise in the use of ENMs in commercial products and industrial applications has 

increased the need for sensors to detect, measure, and monitor the presence of ENMs potentially 

released in diverse environments across the entire NEP life cycle, including R&D, manufacturing, use, 

and disposal or recycling. Currently, there is a very limited suite of sensing devices capable of 

operating in these complex environments. 

The goals of this NSI are to support research on ENM properties and development of supporting 

technologies that enable next-generation sensing of biological, chemical, and nanoscale materials.

This interagency effort coordinates and stimulates creation of the knowledge, tools, and methods 

necessary to develop and test nanosensors and to track the fate of ENMs in the body, consumer 

products, the workplace, and the environment. 

The current two thrust areas for this NSI are to: (1) develop and promote adoption of new technologies 

that employ nanoscale materials and features to overcome technical barriers associated with 

conventional sensors; and (2) develop methods and devices to detect and identify ENMs across their 

life cycles in order to assess their potential impact on human health and the environment.

Relationship between PCAs and Agency Interests 

As for earlier PCAs, the revised PCAs cut across the interests and activities of the NNI agencies and 

represent areas in which achieving the four NNI goals can be facilitated and expedited through 

interagency coordination and collaboration. Table 3 shows the relationship between the PCAs and the 

interests and needs of the agencies. The strength of the relationships correlate broadly with the 

agencies’ R&D investments, and the table also indicates where there are strong correlations between 

PCAs and agency missions, such as in the regulatory realm. For example, the Department of the 

Treasury (DOTreas) does not have a dedicated nanotechnology R&D budget but has indicated a 

primary relationship with PCA 3 and with the NSIs on nanomanufacturing, nanotechnology 

knowledge infrastructure, and nanosensors. These topics all relate directly to DOTreas’s mission

through the possibility of enhancing the security of U.S. currency as well as promoting job creation 

and economic growth.

Successful strategic planning, subsequent execution, and tracking and reporting on the progress and 

accomplishments associated with the NNI are predicated on a strong and clear connection between 

the PCAs and the NNI goals and objectives. Table 4 provides a simplified crosswalk between the NNI 

goals and highest-level objectives and the new PCAs. Note that the strength of the relationship 

between a given PCA and goal is independent of the relationships of the PCA with the objectives 

under that goal. For example, PCA 4 (Research Infrastructure and Instrumentation) is of primary 

importance to the overarching aim of Goal 1 (advance a world-class R&D program) and of secondary 

importance to each objective in this goal.

One desired outcome in redefining the PCAs is to reduce subjective overlap and redundancy and facilitate 

agency efforts to categorize individual projects and catalog funding in both planning and execution. The 

strong connection between the new PCA primary relationships and the goals as illustrated in Table 4 suggests 

that this desired outcome was achieved. The NSIs are focused and carefully framed to enable consistent and 

definitive allocation and tracking. The appropriateness and completeness of the PCAs will continue to be 

assessed by the NSET Subcommittee and will be adjusted as time, priorities, and programs evolve. 
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

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Table 3: Relationships between the Program Component Areas

and the Missions, Interests, and Needs of NNI Agencies

1. Nanotechnology Signature Initiatives (NSIs)

Nanotechnology for Solar EnergyCollection and ConversionSustainable NanomanufacturingNanoelectronics for 2020 and BeyondNanotechnology Knowledge InfrastructureNanotechnology for Sensors andSensors for Nanotechnology

2. Foundational Research3. Nanotechnology-Enabled Applications, Devices, and Systems4. Research Infrastructure and Instrumentation5. Environment, Health, and Safety

CPSC       

DHHS        

DHS      

DOC          

DOD          

DOEd  

DOE        

DOI  

DOJ 

DOL   

DOS    

DOT   

DOTreas        

EPA        

IC        

NASA         

NRC 

NSF          

USDA         

USITC     

KEY:  Primary;  Secondary;  Denotes engagement with at least one NSI
PROGRAM COMPONENT AREAS

 49 

Table 4: Relationships of NNI Program Component Areas

to NNI Goals and Objectives

1. Nanotechnology Signature Initiatives (NSIs)

Nanotechnology for Solar Energy Collection and Conversion

Sustainable Nanomanufacturing 

Nanoelectronics for 

2020 and Beyond

Nanotechnology Knowledge Infrastructure 

Nanotechnology for Sensors and Sensors for Nanotechnology

2. Foundational Research3. Nanotechnology-Enabled Applications, Devices, and Systems4. Research Infrastructure and Instrumentation5. Environment, Health, and Safety

GOAL 1          

Obj 1.1          

Obj 1.2          

Obj 1.3          

Obj 1.4          

GOAL 2          

Obj 2.1          

Obj 2.2          

Obj 2.3          

Obj 2.4          

GOAL 3          

Obj 3.1      

Obj 3.2    

Obj 3.3          

GOAL 4          

Obj 4.1        

Obj 4.2       

Obj 4.3      

Obj 4.4          

KEY:  Primary;  Secondary;  Denotes relationship with at least one NSI

 51 

Coordination and Assessment

The NNI is coordinated, planned, implemented, and reviewed by the Nanoscale Science, Engineering, 

and Technology (NSET) Subcommittee of the Committee on Technology (CoT) of the National Science 

and Technology Council (NSTC). Other components of NNI coordination (described more fully below) 

include thematic NSET working groups, identified coordinators for specific cross-cutting areas, the 

National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO), the Executive Office of the President (EOP), and 

other interagency efforts of national importance. Periodic assessment of the NNI by external advisory 

bodies provides additional input and guidance to the NNI. The figure on the next page shows the 

relationships between NNI coordination and assessment bodies. The roles of these entities are further 

described below.

Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology Subcommittee (NSET)

The NSET Subcommittee was established in 2000 under the NSTC’s CoT to coordinate interagency 

nanotechnology R&D activities. The NNCO was subsequently established as the point of contact on 

Federal nanotechnology R&D activities and to provide technical and administrative assistance to the 

NSET Subcommittee. The 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act of December 

200338 (hereafter referred to as “the Act”) formalized many of the coordination structures that the 

NSTC had organized, and it established additional mechanisms to ensure that the Federal Government 

developed sound, informed nanotechnology R&D strategies and policies. This legislation also created 

the National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel (NNAP), called for a triennial review of the NNI by the 

National Research Council of the National Academies (NRC/NA), and established additional functions 

for the NNCO. 

The NSET Subcommittee leads the interagency coordination of the Federal Government’s 

nanotechnology R&D enterprise by cooperatively coordinating the research, development, 

communication, and funding functions of the NNI. The NSET Subcommittee develops the NNI 

Strategic Plan, prepares the annual NNI Supplement to the President’s Budget, and sponsors 

workshops or other interagency activities that inform the Federal Government’s nanotechnologyrelated decision-making processes. The high-level framework provided by the NNI Strategic Plan 

establishes goals, objectives, and priorities. The framework also guides and informs the participating 

agencies in developing their individual nanotechnology R&D implementation plans. The 

Subcommittee member agencies invest across all of the critical areas needed to support the 

development and utilization of nanotechnology. Further, the Subcommittee interacts with pertinent 

academic, industry, state, local government, and other Federal government groups, and with 

international organizations. Each agency participating in the NNI is represented on the NSET 

Subcommittee; a list of those agencies is given at the front of this report. A co-chair from the Office of 

Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and a co-chair from an NNI agency lead the NSET 

Subcommittee, which meets at least six times each year.

 

38 Pub. L. No. 108-153, § 7501, 117 Stat. 1923 (2003).
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

 52 

Coordination and Assessment of the NNI

* Executive order 13539 designates the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) 

as the National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel (NNAP).

Executive Office of 

the President (EOP)

National Science 

and Technology 

Council (NSTC)

Committee on 

Technology

Committee 

on Science

National 

Nanotechnology 

Advisory Panel*

(currently PCAST)

Subcommittee 

on Nanoscale

Sci., Eng., & 

Tech. (NSET)

National 

Nanotechnology 

Coordination 

Office (NNCO)

National 

Academies

Nanotech. Environmental & 

Health Implications (NEHI)

Working Group

Nanomanufacturing, Industry 

Liaison, & Innovation (NILI)

Working Group

Coordinators:

• Standards

• EHS Research

• Global Issues

• Education, Engagement, &

Societal Dimensions

OSTP OMB

Type of Organization

EOP

NNI Assessing NNI Coordinating

NSTC

Type of Relationship

Formal Reporting

Informal Reporting

Administrative/contractual

Working Groups of the NSET Subcommittee

The NSET Subcommittee has chartered subsidiary working groups39 to provide a structure to improve 

the effectiveness and productivity of the Subcommittee and its participating agencies in areas that 

will benefit from focused interagency attention and activity. The current working groups are the 

Nanotechnology Environmental and Health Implications (NEHI) Working Group and the

Nanomanufacturing, Industry Liaison, and Innovation (NILI) Working Group. The NSET Subcommittee 

periodically reviews the need for existing or new working groups in terms of focus, intended 

participation, and scope, as reflected in the groups’ charters.

 

39 The latest information on each of the NSET working groups is at www.nano.gov/about-nni/working-groups. 
COORDINATION AND ASSESSMENT

 53 

Nanotechnology Environmental and Health Implications (NEHI) Working Group 

Nanotechnology has the potential to significantly transform society in many key areas including new 

materials, processes, and products. In order to fully realize the promise of nanotechnology, Federal 

agencies support research to understand the environmental, health, and safety (EHS) implications of 

nanotechnology and provide guidance on the safety of nanomaterials across the product life cycle. 

The NSET Subcommittee’s NEHI Working Group provides a forum for focused interagency 

collaborations on EHS and leadership in establishing the national nanotechnology EHS research 

agenda, in addition to communicating EHS information among NNI agencies and to the public. The 

combined efforts of the nanotechnology R&D community, public health advocacy groups, and the 

public are required to fully address EHS research priorities and strengthen the scientific foundation of 

risk assessment and risk management of nanotechnology. NEHI provides the nexus, as appropriate, for 

interactions between agencies and these diverse communities. The sum of these interactions and 

activities enhances the value of NNI efforts and provides a collaborative approach to examining public 

health and environmental concerns about nanomaterials. NEHI member agencies include those with 

direct responsibilities for public, workplace, and environmental safety, and agencies involved in 

science, education, and policy.

Nanomanufacturing, Industry Liaison, and Innovation (NILI) Working Group

A sustained commitment to nanotechnology-based innovation is key to realizing the NNI vision. This 

commitment is brought about by cooperation, dialogue, and partnerships among all the stakeholders 

in the nanotechnology innovation ecosystem. The NSET Subcommittee’s NILI Working Group 

coordinates activities in this area. NILI promotes and facilitates exchange of information and 

collaborations among Federal agencies, academia, industry, and regional, state, and local (RSL) 

organizations to build U.S. leadership in nanotechnology-enabled products and commercialization 

through activities such as developing and maintaining databases of nanotechnology-related 

technology transfers, nanotechnology standards, and Federal regulations across agencies. More 

information on these resources is available at www.nano.gov/NILI. NILI periodically organizes 

workshops that bring together RSL stakeholders. In particular, NILI seeks to help the NNI agencies 

organize coherent support structures and effective or best technology transfer practices, making good 

use of the expertise of industry-initiated liaison groups. These liaison groups are a conduit for 

partnerships between the NNI agencies and industry sectors and generally represent particular 

industries (e.g., electronics, chemicals, and forest products). A significant component of supporting the 

innovation process is fostering development of standard nanotechnology reference materials, 

terminology, and measurement and characterization methods. As with the other NSET Subcommittee 

working groups, communication, outreach, and engagement activities are significant foci of the NILI

Working Group. 

Coordinator Functions

Based on a 2010 recommendation from the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology 

(PCAST),

40 the NNI designates coordinators in cross-cutting topical areas to track developments, lead 

in organizing activities, report periodically to the NSET Subcommittee, and serve as central points of 

 

40 www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/microsites/ostp/pcast-nano-report.pdf
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

 54 

contact for NNI information in the corresponding areas. These coordinators work with NNI agencies to 

identify priorities and emerging opportunities and to strengthen interagency coordination on these 

critical topics. The individuals serving in these positions are appointed from either the NNCO or an NNI 

agency. Initially two coordinators were identified: 

• Coordinator for Standards Development. 

• Coordinator for Environmental, Health, and Safety Research. 

The coordinator mechanism serves as an agile and efficient means to monitor and coordinate agency 

interests and interactions in these areas. As a result, two additional positions of this type have been 

established: 

• Coordinator for Global Issues. 

• Coordinator for Education, Engagement, and Societal Dimensions. 

The Coordinator for Global Issues assumes some of the functions of the previous Global Issues in 

Nanotechnology (GIN) Working Group. This coordinator will work in close concert with other bodies, 

including NSET’s NEHI Working Group (considering the strong global interest in EHS research); the 

NSTC Subcommittee on Topics in International Science, Technology, and Innovation; and the 

nanotechnology subgroup of the Emerging Technologies Interagency Policy Coordination Committee, 

which engages in numerous international dialogues that involve nanotechnology, particularly with 

respect to regulatory aspects. The Coordinator for Education, Engagement, and Societal Dimensions 

consolidates related activities in the areas of formal and informal education, public engagement and 

communication, and societal dimensions, including the ethical, legal, and societal implications of 

nanotechnology. This involves some functions of the previous Nanotechnology Public Engagement 

and Communications (NPEC) Working Group, such as preparation for and organization of public 

outreach activities and other events.

The transition of international interactions and public engagement activities from a working group 

structure to a coordinator function provides an opportunity to renew and concentrate efforts in these 

areas. Groups of interested NSET representatives serve as a resource and information distribution 

channel for the corresponding coordinators and may convene informally for meetings or other events 

on an occasional basis. Additional coordinators may be appointed as needed.

National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO)

The NNCO serves as a pivotal locus for the NNI by providing technical and administrative support for 

the NSET Subcommittee; serving as a central point of contact for Federal nanotechnology R&D 

activities, including NSET working groups; and performing public outreach and engagement on behalf 

of the NNI. 

The NNCO organizes meetings of the NSET Subcommittee and its working groups, providing staff 

members to serve as central points of contact and to record and maintain minutes of the meetings. 

The NNCO also organizes NNI-sponsored workshops and prepares and publishes reports of those 

workshops. It coordinates the preparation and publication of NNI interagency planning, budget, and 

assessment documents, such as the annual NNI Supplement to the President’s Budget. The NNCO 

serves as a Congressional liaison by coordinating the development of information on the NNI and its 

activities for Congress when requested.
COORDINATION AND ASSESSMENT

 55 

The NNCO produces and distributes information for the general public, including brochures, workshop 

reports, nanotechnology-related news, educational resources, funding opportunities, and other 

information, all of which are made available on the NNI website, www.nano.gov. This website, which is 

designed, organized, and maintained by the NNCO, also provides information about recent 

developments in nanotechnology and NNI activities. The NNCO communications effort is 

strengthened by relationships between NNCO staff and key press contacts and public information 

officers at NNI agencies. NNCO staff members prepare and deliver presentations and lectures on NNI 

activities at professional society meetings and at a wide variety of public venues. The NNCO will 

continue to organize diverse public input and outreach activities; future examples may include 

interactive web dialogues, citizen panels, workshops, and other educational events. 

Contributions from the NNI agencies fund the NNCO. The White House Chair of the NSTC Committee 

on Technology appoints the NNCO Director and Deputy Director in consultation with the co-chairs of 

the NSET Subcommittee. 

Executive Office of the President (EOP)

Representatives from EOP participate in NNI activities to ensure that implementation of the NNI is 

coordinated and consistent with Government-wide priorities. The primary points of interaction are 

OSTP and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

OSTP is responsible for advising the EOP on matters relating to science and technology and supports 

coordination of interagency science and technology activities. OSTP administers the NSTC, and the 

OSTP representative to the NSET Subcommittee is a co-chair of the Subcommittee. This arrangement 

provides EOP-level input on and support for various NNI activities.

OMB is responsible for coordinating with the NNI agency budget offices to establish the 

nanotechnology R&D budget for planning and tracking purposes. Each year, OMB collects budget 

information regarding the total Federal investment in nanotechnology R&D as well as information 

about agency investments within each program component area.

Related Interagency Activities 

The NNI is committed to leveraging other interagency efforts that are synergistic with 

nanotechnology. These related activities include interagency policy coordination committees, other 

NSTC subcommittees, and other national initiatives. The Emerging Technologies Interagency Policy 

Coordination Committee was established to better coordinate cross-cutting policy issues (such as 

regulatory approaches) associated with emerging technologies among Federal agencies, and 

nanotechnology issues are specifically addressed by a designated subgroup. Two other NSTC bodies 

with nanotechnology components are the Advanced Manufacturing Subcommittee and the Materials 

Genome Initiative Subcommittee; the NNI has ongoing interactions with both of them. The Brain 

Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative is a developing effort in 

which nanotechnology is expected to have a significant enabling role. 

Assessment

The Act calls for periodic assessment of the NNI through annual interagency reporting and through

review by external advisory bodies. The annual interagency analysis of progress called for in the Act is 
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STRATEGIC PLAN

 56 

provided in the NNI Supplement to the President’s Budget,41 which also serves as the NNI annual 

report called for in the Act. Specifically, progress toward achieving NNI goals and priorities is analyzed 

in terms of (1) investments categorized by program component area (PCA), including cross-cutting 

interagency activities coordinated through the NSET Subcommittee, and (2) activities relating to the 

four NNI goals, including individual agency activities as well as activities coordinated with other 

agencies and institutions, including international interactions. 

Review by outside advisory groups is vital to keeping NNI efforts focused and balanced, and the Act 

established two mechanisms for such review. First, the Act calls for the President to establish a 

National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel to advise the President and the NSTC on matters relating to 

the NNI. The Act specifically calls for the NNAP to assess the Federal nanotechnology R&D program at 

least once every two years. Executive Order 13539 (2010) designates PCAST as the NNAP. The members 

of PCAST are senior representatives from industry and academic research institutions who have 

extensive experience in managing large science and technology organizations. Second, the Act calls 

for the NNCO Director to make arrangements for NRC/NA to review the NNI every third year. NRC/NA 

panels for the NNI reviews are typically comprised of a broad cross-section of technical experts with 

knowledge specifically related to nanotechnology. The NRC/NA provides independent science, 

technology, and health policy advice to the Federal Government. It is the principal operating agency 

of the National Academies in providing services to the Federal Government, the public, and the 

scientific and engineering communities. 

The first assessment by PCAST in its role as the NNAP was released in May 2005, and the first NRC/NA 

review under the Act was completed in November 2006. Subsequent reviews from PCAST were 

completed in April 2008, March 2010, and April 2012, and the NRC/NA delivered reports in December 

2009 and April 2013. The perspectives of these two bodies, and their assessments, are complementary, 

and the NNI has benefited from their diverse inputs into the planning and evaluation process. The 

resulting recommendations have led to specific actions and focused attention in areas that were 

highlighted by both groups, including research on environmental, health, and safety aspects of 

nanotechnology; quantitative metrics to assess the progress of the Initiative; and expanded efforts to 

improve education and workforce preparation, as well as program management.

 

41 Available at www.nano.gov. 
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Concluding Remarks

This fourth NNI Strategic Plan, developed by the Nanoscale, Science, Engineering, and Technology

(NSET) Subcommittee, addresses evolving scientific, technological, and societal priorities, as well as 

the needs of the broader nanotechnology community. The same NNI foundational principles and 

practices on which the three earlier strategic plans were built are embodied in this consensus plan: 

• A common vision—a future in which the ability to understand and control matter at the 

nanoscale leads to a revolution in technology and industry that benefits society.

• A framework that provides context for NNI agencies in the formulation of their intramural and 

extramural research portfolios and allocation of their resources in support of their agencyspecific missions.

• Collective and concerted efforts of the NNI agencies to achieve the four goals through the 

stated objectives, via individual agency and multi-agency collaborative initiatives and 

activities.

• Continuous needs assessments via outreach to myriad stakeholders by means ranging from 

informal interactions to webinars and stakeholder workshops.

• Open, transparent communication with the general public regarding the benefits and 

potential risks of nanotechnology to human health and the environment.

• Strong, proactive engagement with international organizations.

Several aspects of this current strategic plan differ significantly from the prior plans. The program 

component areas (PCAs) were revised to better represent the current state of nanotechnology; the 

revisions addressed, among other things, substantial advances in applications and commercialization, 

expanded interagency collaborations, and broader participation of agencies in non-R&D activities. 

Finally, the revised PCA descriptions are better aligned with the goals and objectives of the current 

plan. Some of the objectives were changed to reflect nanotechnology advances and evolving 

stakeholder needs and to hone the language to facilitate clearer communication and comprehension 

of the objectives. Improved consistency among the goals was achieved by assigning sub-objectives to 

each objective and by making the level of specificity of the text for the objectives more uniform. 

In the past three years, extensive progress has been made by the NNI agencies in addressing the goals 

and associated objectives in the 2011 NNI Strategic Plan, as detailed in the agency updates available in 

the annual NNI Supplement to the President’s Budget.

42 Several notable achievements illustrate such 

progress. The three Nanotechnology Signature Initiatives (NSIs) initiated in 2010 are models of 

successful interagency collaborations that leverage the strengths, resources, and investments of the 

NNI agencies. Two new NSIs were established in 2012 that cut across many nanotechnology 

application areas and are aligned with the plans and activities of the agencies participating in each of 

these NSIs. To foster technology transfer and business creation, the NNI held a Regional, State, and 

Local Initiatives in Nanotechnology Workshop in 2012 to discuss Federal resources available to

regional, state, and local (RSLs) organizations, as well as RSL best practices. The functionality and 

 

42 Available at www.nano.gov. 
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content of the NNI website www.nano.gov have been greatly expanded to establish a robust hub for 

nanotechnology information dissemination aimed at a multitude of stakeholder groups. For example, 

there are comprehensive webpages devoted to addressing common concerns of nanotechnology 

start-up companies and providing education and training resources for K–12 students and teachers, as 

well as compilations of educational institutions with nanotechnology-focused programs at the 

associate, bachelor, and doctoral levels. The website contains over 150 publications and resources on 

scientific, educational, and societal dimensions workshops; current and historical NNI budget 

documents; and the research strategies of individual NNI agencies. Interagency collaborations are 

widespread and varied in nature; since the launch of the Initiative, its annual budget supplements and 

other documents have identified well over a hundred concrete efforts involving multiple agency 

collaboration, including joint and parallel solicitations, interagency agreements, memoranda of 

understanding, co-sponsored workshops, and jointly operated facilities. 

Since the inception of the NNI in 2000, nanotechnology has been increasingly relied upon across 

broad areas of national importance, enabling revolutionary advances in diverse areas such as cancer 

treatment, renewable energy, and information processing. Building on these advances and future 

developments, it is expected that new nanotechnology-enabled applications, products, and systems 

will emerge with novel and improved functionality and performance. These innovations are enabled 

by ongoing support from NNI agencies and by the insight and expertise of the entire stakeholder 

community, including academic researchers, industry representatives, and the public. The NNI and its 

agencies are committed to sustaining and enhancing the role of the Federal Government in assuring 

that all aspects of nanotechnology—R&D, commercialization, infrastructure (education, workforce, 

and research facilities), and responsible development—are strengthened to benefit society, the U.S. 

economy, and international competitiveness.
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Appendix A. External Assessment 

and Stakeholder Input

As referenced throughout this plan, multiple independent, external sources provided the NNI with 

advice and recommendations during the creation of this document. In contrast to the other public 

NNI-sponsored workshops held in 2011–2013 spanning a variety of nanotechnology themes, the 

resources below specifically targeted the development of this document. 

External Assessment Reports

The President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology performed the fourth assessment of 

the NNI, releasing the Report to the President and Congress on the Fourth Assessment of the National 

Nanotechnology Initiative43 on April 27, 2012, and the National Research Council released the Triennial 

Review of the National Nanotechnology Initiative44 on April 23, 2013. Both reports are largely supportive 

of the NNI and contain a number of specific recommendations that the Nanoscale Science, 

Engineering, and Technology (NSET) Subcommittee has considered and incorporated where practical 

and appropriate in its planning activities and in drafting this strategic plan. 

2013 NNI Strategic Planning Stakeholder Workshop, June 2013

To strengthen the development of this strategic plan, the NNI held the 2013 NNI Strategic Planning 

Stakeholder Workshop on June 11–12, 2013, in Washington, DC, to solicit public input. Members of the 

nanotechnology stakeholder community who attended the workshop included those already familiar 

with the field of nanotechnology and the NNI as well as those new to nanoscale science, engineering, 

and technology; they comprised members of the public; industry representatives; researchers; 

members of Federal, state, and local governments and regional initiatives; and representatives of 

nongovernmental organizations. Their input was invaluable in the development of the 2014 NNI 

Strategic Plan. Recommendations from the community have been carefully considered in creating the 

objectives found in this document. A summary of the workshop plenary presentations and breakout 

sessions is available in Appendix B. 

Public Comment on Draft Strategic Plan, November 2013

A draft of the NNI Strategic Plan was released for a thirty-day public comment period from November 

19 to December 18, 2013. This was announced in the Federal Register and on www.nano.gov. 

Responses and recommendations were received from the broad stakeholder community, including 

academic researchers and administrators, industry representatives, and nongovernmental 

organizations. All responses are available for public inspection at www.nano.gov/2014strategy and 

were considered by the NSET Subcommittee in the final preparation of this plan.

 

43 www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/microsites/ostp/PCAST_2012_Nanotechnology_FINAL.pdf

44 www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=18271
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Appendix B. 2013 NNI Strategic Planning 

Stakeholder Workshop Summary

The 2013 NNI Strategic Planning Stakeholder Workshop was held on June 11–12, 2013, in Washington, 

DC. The goal of the workshop was to obtain input from stakeholders regarding revisions to the NNI 

Strategic Plan that were proposed at the workshop. The recommendations of this one-and-a-half day 

workshop informed the development of the 2014 NNI Strategic Plan.

The workshop was attended by approximately 120 participants from a variety of backgrounds, 

including government; academia; industry; regional, state, and local initiatives; and nongovernmental 

organizations. In addition, approximately 150 people viewed the live webcast of the plenary sessions.

More information about the workshop, including links to the agenda, presentation slides, a participant 

list, and videos of the plenary presentations, is available at www.nano.gov/stakeholderworkshop. 

Plenary Sessions

Plenary presentations were designed to give a broad overview of the nanotechnology landscape, 

including major challenges and opportunities. 

Welcome, NNI Overview, & Charge to Participants

Altaf Carim, Office of Science and Technology Policy, Executive Office of the President

Dr. Carim opened the workshop by welcoming all of the participants. He gave a broad overview of the 

NNI, remarking that the Initiative is not a distinct funding program. Instead, it represents a priority area 

for Government investment and activity. 

The NNI Strategic Plan is updated triennially, and Dr. Carim described how the document has evolved 

since it was first published in 2004. Most notably, objectives have been added to each of the four 

major goals, and the program component areas have been introduced and revised. 

The Nanotechnology Signature Initiatives (NSIs) represent topical priorities of national importance 

that may be more rapidly advanced through focused interagency coordination. Observing that the 

NNI is broad, Dr. Carim stated that the NSIs are intended to be very specific. For example, the

Sustainable Nanomanufacturing NSI does not encompass all nanomanufacturing. Rather, it focuses on 

three particular materials: carbon-based materials, optical metamaterials, and cellulosic materials. The 

NSIs are intended to be dynamic, with topics transitioning in and out of the spotlight as their goals are 

met and as national priorities evolve. 

Dr. Carim asked the meeting participants to provide input on changes in the community and in the 

science since the publication of the 2011 NNI Strategic Plan, new opportunities and challenges, areas 

of emphasis and priority, and NNI approaches and activities. Further, he invited attendees to consider 

the relationships between the goals and objectives and the revised program component areas as well 

as the NSIs. 
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Synergies with Other Federal Initiatives

Thomas Kalil, Office of Science and Technology Policy, Executive Office of the President

Mr. Kalil presented an overview of various science and technology initiatives in the Federal 

Government and how these activities build on and reinforce the NNI. He noted that nanotechnology 

has the potential to address many of the Obama Administration’s priorities, including economic 

development, clean energy technologies, and improved medical care. 

President Obama announced the Materials Genome Initiative (MGI) in 2011 to reduce the time from 

discovery to high-volume manufacturing and to make the process of developing new materials more 

predictive. The goal of the MGI is to develop a “materials innovation infrastructure,” including 

computational and experimental tools, digital data, and collaborative networks. Mr. Kalil remarked 

that there is a high level of overlap between the MGI and the NNI.

The effort to identify and pursue grand challenges is a key element of President Obama’s strategy for 

American innovation. Mr. Kalil cited the EV Everywhere and SunShot programs at the Department of 

Energy as potential challenges in which nanotechnology could play a role. He further stated that the 

idea for the Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative, which 

was launched in 2013, grew out of an interdisciplinary workshop with nanoscientists in attendance, 

highlighting the need to support interactions at the intersections of disciplines. 

Acknowledging that the Obama Administration enthusiastically supports fundamental research, Mr. 

Kalil mentioned the cross-cutting desire to more efficiently move ideas from the lab to the market. This 

is particularly important in areas that are expensive and take a long time to develop, because angel 

and venture investors don’t find these investments attractive. To this end, Mr. Kalil listed several 

promising commercialization models for nanotechnology: 

• Identification of areas where the Government can serve as an early adopter.

• Collaborations between industry and academia, funded by industry and Government. These 

collaborations address industrial needs that are beyond industrial timelines.

• Identification of areas where Government initiatives support advanced manufacturing and 

translational research at high technology readiness levels. 

• Collaborations between Government and large companies that have corporate venture capital 

arms and that are prepared to make strategic nanotechnology-based investments.

Mr. Kalil closed his talk by recommending a retrospective look at various sectors impacted by 

nanotechnology to see how the NNI has met its goals and to identify where there is room for 

improvement. 

Bridging Technologies 

Paul Braun, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

The central thesis of Prof. Braun’s talk was that scientists and engineers need to bridge nanoscience 

with macroscale systems to realize the full potential of nanotechnology. He gave several examples, 

such as carbon black, clay, and pigments, of pervasive materials with nanoscale elements. The 

common attribute of these systems is that they are all commodities.
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Prof. Braun pointed out that many of the high-profile nanotechnology-enabled products (NEPs) on the 

market involve two-dimensional thin films in microelectronics, but nanotechnology can be more 

powerful if it is used in three-dimensional systems. He discussed how a paradigm shift is needed in 

product development; otherwise, the steady rate of progress in established products will surpass the 

incremental improvements from nanotechnology due to the long development timelines. 

Prof. Braun used three case studies to illustrate how nanotechnology can be bridged with macroscopic 

systems. The first example was the production of low-cost, large-area periodic structures with 

multibeam holography. These three-dimensional photonic crystals were assembled with a common 

two-dimensional semiconductor to produce a light-emitting diode (LED). The second example cited 

by Prof. Braun was the use of nanotechnology to make a layered clay material that acts as a thermal 

insulator. Based on the fact that thermal conductivity decreases as the number of surfaces increases, 

the Braun research group made materials with ultralow thermal conductivity by including 

approximately one interface per nanometer. The third example of bridging between the nano- and 

macroscales was lithium-ion batteries. A typical battery is already inherently nanostructured, but to 

improve the efficiency of these devices, the nanostructures need to be fabricated in a highly 

controlled and affordable way. Prof. Braun described how his research lab is using self-assembly to 

address this issue. He concluded by saying that the goal is to make nanotechnology so commonplace 

that it is considered boring.

Commercializing Nanotechnology

Christopher Schuh, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Prof. Schuh began by saying that the only way research can truly connect to society is through 

products introduced to the market. However, all products will have to go through a nonlinear gauntlet 

of challenges that present opportunities for redirection. Prof. Schuh presented six case studies of 

nanotechnology commercialization that illustrate successful course corrections. 

The first three examples of course correction all came during the implementation phase when the 

scientific idea was developed, scaled up, and integrated into a product. The targeted application 

evolved from low-power batteries to high-power batteries as development of nanospinels proceeded. 

The synthetic process for making silver nanowires for use in touch screens was completely 

transformed during scale-up. The targeted implementation of quantum dot LEDs was modified during 

the integration phase to provide a drop-in replacement for current technologies. Prof. Schuh noted 

that the integration stage presents a significant opportunity for adjustment because nanotechnology 

is often integrated into larger products. However, this means that infrastructure and economic 

interests bias technology toward incremental changes.

The next two case studies illustrated how course corrections were made after the products interacted

with the market. Prof. Schuh described how developers discovered an opportunity to detect common 

fungal infections and reduce mortality rates after introducing magnetite nanoparticles to the market 

for a different application. Corrosion- and impact-resistant coatings were slowly adopted in products 

such as machining parts because they created a premium product in a commodity space. When the 

coatings were used in electronics, however, they were more successful because chip manufacturers 

were able to use less coating and less gold, which added value for the customer.
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The final example presented by Prof. Schuh was that of strained silicon in computing, which is 

arguably the most pervasive NEP on the market. However, it had a circuitous path through many 

target applications and development venues before it was successfully implemented. Now it is 

integrated into every newly produced computer chip. 

Infrastructure Needs 

Julia Phillips, Sandia National Laboratories

Dr. Phillips began her talk with an overview of current nanotechnology infrastructure capabilities. 

Scientists can observe a diverse set of nanostructures and real-time structural changes. They can also 

create, assemble, and manipulate a wide range of nanostructures, but this is often done one structure 

at a time. A primary challenge in the future will be consistently creating identical structures in high 

volumes. Dr. Phillips suggested that combinatorial methods should be used to explore the vast 

territory of potential new materials. As nanotechnology matures, techniques will continue to evolve to 

address more complex nanomaterial systems. 

Dr. Phillips next outlined six opportunities to sustain and improve nanotechnology infrastructure:

• Fast, cheap, and robust methods for nanomanufacturing, including tools that measure effects 

on the environment, health, and safety. Dr. Phillips further suggested strengthening the 

connection between fundamental science and commercialization. 

• Nanometrology to characterize increasingly complicated architectures and systems. Two 

particularly important challenges are developing techniques to assess quality against standard 

materials and to analyze composition and properties at the same site.

• Recapitalization to maintain state-of-the-art physical infrastructure. Innovative approaches to 

integrating across the value chain should be considered. There is also a need for enhanced 

coordination and specialization across the national user facilities. 

• Physical and virtual access to facilities and infrastructure. This is particularly important for 

facilities with unique or expensive equipment. Dr. Phillips also mentioned that a spectrum of 

access models need to be available to users based on their needs.

• Approaches to complexity to address issues such as identifying relevant variables in multiscale 

integrated nanostructures and big data sets. Possible approaches include visualization 

approaches to data analysis and simplifying overly complicated subjects. 

• A qualified talent pool. It is important to instill interdisciplinary fluency as well as a deep 

technical expertise in nanotechnology researchers. Dr. Phillips also emphasized the need to 

foster nanotechnology literacy in the general public.

International Challenges and Opportunities

Shaun Clancy, Evonik Corporation

Dr. Clancy outlined four international challenges in nanotechnology as well as several groups that are 

working to address these issues. Terminology plays a critical role in how information is exchanged. A 

number of groups are developing nanotechnology terminology, including Technical Committee 229 

(TC 229) of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The next challenge is safety, which 

is a primary concern across the international community. Dr. Clancy outlined several activities on this 

topic, such as inhalation research in the United States and work in Germany on the translocation of 
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engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) within organisms. Another challenge is regulation. Dr. Clancy stated 

that industry recognizes the importance of regulations that provide appropriate oversight without 

becoming too burdensome. The final challenge is international regulatory cooperation. In particular, Dr. 

Clancy described the research program within the Working Party on Manufactured Nanomaterials 

(WPMN) of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The goal is to 

group ENMs into families such that each material does not have to be considered individually. 

In addition to the activities outlined above, Dr. Clancy described four international opportunities, one 

of which is transnational activities to facilitate the development of nanotechnology. For example, the 

International Alliance for NanoEHS Harmonization is conducting round-robin testing to identify and 

eliminate procedural inconsistencies among labs. ISO/TC 229 has two task groups working to better 

understand sustainability and societal impacts of nanotechnology. The applications of nanotechnology

are inherently global. It is important to ensure that the benefits of applications, such as energy 

efficiency, better pharmaceuticals, and environmental remediation, accrue to all segments of society. 

One advantage of nanotechnology is that the barriers to entry are relatively low, encouraging 

developing countries to get involved. Dr. Clancy concluded his presentation by challenging the NNI 

and its agencies to continue to incorporate international thinking into their activities.

Ethical, Legal, and Societal Implications

Barbara Herr Harthorn, University of California Santa Barbara

Prof. Herr Harthorn described how social scientists who study the ethical, legal, and societal 

implications (ELSI) of nanotechnology explore society’s views on the benefits and potential risks. The 

National Science Foundation supports two Centers for Nanotechnology in Society (CNS-UCSB at 

University of California Santa Barbara and CNS-ASU at Arizona State University), which together 

provide the largest nanotechnology-related ELSI research and education infrastructure in the world. 

Prof. Herr Harthorn described five key themes of research on the societal implications of 

nanotechnology:

• Global R&D—Research performed in developing countries is rapidly improving in both quality 

and quantity. There is also a need for equitable development of nanotechnology in the global 

south. 

• The Nanotechnology Workplace—Surveys have shown that industry often implements 

recommended environmental, health, and safety (EHS) practices, but disposal and waste 

management practices for ENMs and NEPs are not widespread. Larger companies generally 

have more sophisticated approaches, while small and medium enterprises have higher 

percentages of workers handling manufactured nanomaterials but less EHS infrastructure.

• Risk and Benefit Perception—As science and public understanding of nanotechnology coevolve, it is important to iteratively survey the public and to understand that there is not one 

“public.” Instead there are groups of stakeholders with different beliefs and values; CNS-UCSB 

research shows that risk communication should be tailored to each specific audience.

Generally, publics in the United States still perceive more benefits than risks from 

nanotechnologies, but their opinions may change, and more high-quality information is 

needed.
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• Public Engagement—The features of successful engagement activities are known in the 

academic community, but multistakeholder engagement is difficult. Prof. Herr Harthorn 

described the intensive outreach activities at CNS-ASU over a two-year period that had 

measurable societal impacts on the practices, activities, and knowledge of organizations. 

• Governance—One model for anticipatory governance, also from CNS-ASU, has four key 

components: foresight, engagement, integration across fields, and “ensemble-ization” because 

nothing works in isolation. Successful governance is an iterative process that adapts based on 

evolving needs and information. 

Prof. Herr Harthorn noted that the nanotechnology ELSI research program and community are well 

established because these issues are emphasized and supported by the NNI. She argued that it is vital 

to maintain this infrastructure to support future NNI activities. 

Environmental, Health, and Safety Considerations

David Warheit, DuPont Haskell Global Centers for Health and Environmental Sciences

Dr. Warheit first summarized early research that demonstrated similar toxicity properties in nanoscale 

titanium dioxide and larger particles when surface area was taken into account. He emphasized that 

since the publication of that study, novel toxicity properties have not been demonstrated in ENMs

when compared to effects demonstrated with fine particle toxicity. 

The Nano Risk Framework45 was developed to manage potential EHS effects across a product’s life 

cycle. The Framework includes six iterative steps, and considerable emphasis is placed on profiling the 

properties, hazards, and exposure. To illustrate how this framework is used, Dr. Warheit described 

research on nanoscale titanium dioxide. He highlighted the importance of thoroughly characterizing 

the particles’ properties, measuring dose response, examining response over time, and using controls 

in the study. The main finding was that biological response was commensurate with the particles’ 

surface reactivity. 

Dr. Warheit’s research group has done multiple studies with the goal of reducing experiments in living 

organisms and transitioning to in vitro experiments. One study examined a variety of particles in vivo

and in vitro. The results from the two systems were not consistent, meaning that in vitro studies are 

good for mechanistic studies but are still not sufficient for hazard screens. Dr. Warheit argued that 

more sophisticated in vitro systems are needed to better simulate biological systems. 

Reliable, validated, and predictive high-throughput screening assays are still not available, and there is 

a paucity of reliable in vivo data, which is needed to establish a foundation for developing new tools. 

Dr. Warheit suggested building an in vivo database of five to ten representative ENM types. Using this 

database, in vitro and in silico results could be compared to those from in vivo findings. Additional 

needs include increased use of dose- and time-course studies; more complex experimental designs 

such as longer-term exposure/post-exposure periods, relevant doses, and dose metrics; and 

appropriate target cells that better simulate relevant exposure routes, as well as the development of 

standardized reference and benchmark nanomaterials. 

 

45 www.nanoriskframework.com
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Breakout Sessions

Breakout sessions were held on five themes: EHS Considerations; Infrastructure Needs; Ethical, Legal, 

and Societal Implications; Commercializing Nanotechnology; and Technical Challenges. On the first 

day, participants were asked to answer several targeted questions.46 The breakout sessions 

reconvened on the second day to review the goals and objectives from the 2011 NNI Strategic Plan. 

Participants were invited to provide input on potential changes in emphasis areas, new opportunities 

and challenges, and specific topics with significant potential for impact in the next three to five years.

Environmental, Health, and Safety Considerations

Co-Chairs: Richard Canady (ILSI Research Foundation), Charles Geraci (National Institute for 

Occupational Safety and Health), and Thabet Tolaymat (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency)

There is still great interest in nanotechnology-related EHS issues, as evidenced by the fact that over 

half of the workshop attendees participated in the two EHS breakout sessions. A diverse group of 

stakeholders provided input on barriers, gaps, and opportunities to further support EHS research on 

ENMs and NEPs.

The greatest impediment to progress in EHS research, as outlined by breakout session attendees, is the 

complex and multidisciplinary nature of nanotechnology. There are many types of ENMs with varying 

surface functionalities that will be exposed to different media throughout their life cycles. 

Transformations of ENMs at various life cycle stages and difficulties associated with measuring 

multiple ENM properties and NEP stability in realistic media add to the challenge of science-based risk 

assessment. Finally, progress in EHS research is predicated on communication and collaborations 

among researchers in many disciplines, including physical, chemical, biological, health, environmental, 

and social sciences. 

Given the complexity of ENMs as well as EHS communications and collaboration challenges, the 

stakeholders identified a robust nanotechnology-related environmental, health, and safety (nanoEHS) 

informatics infrastructure as a requirement to relate ENM properties, exposure, and hazard knowledge 

sets for the various communities. Participants emphasized the following critical features for this 

infrastructure as it develops: (1) a compendium of existing methods, reference materials and consensus

standards, and data organized in a coherent manner; (2) an ability to easily add such information as it 

becomes available; (3) transparent sharing of information; and (4) validation of methods and data. 

Attendees also called for increased emphasis in the following areas: sustainability; exposure and 

toxicity data that inform risk assessment of current or reasonably anticipated uses of nanotechnology; 

high-throughput screening tools; environmental fate and transport measurements and models; ENMs 

in food; dose metrics; and methods to distinguish ENMs from naturally occurring nanomaterials. The 

creation of a repository of well-characterized ENMs available for testing by researchers and for use in 

international interlaboratory studies was identified as a final high-priority research need. 

Some breakout session attendees expressed concern that it is difficult to gauge progress toward NNI 

goals and objectives because the broad, long-ranging focus of the strategic plan is difficult to relate to 

specific near-term objectives. Stakeholders indicated that the NNI could better communicate progress 

 

46 Available at www.nano.gov/stakeholderworkshop.
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by various means, such as a “dashboard” of progress for each objective in the plan and a stand-alone 

document containing detailed examples of NNI successes in EHS activities and best practices

associated with the strategic plan. Finally, participants recommended that NNI agencies take action to 

make EHS a more critical part of their nanotechnology portfolios.

As a new opportunity, the participants recommended that the NNI agencies and the National 

Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO) proactively interact with industry to learn about R&D 

and commercialization trends. This would enable the NNI agencies and industry to collaboratively 

identify EHS issues early in product development and to provide guidance on nanoEHS research. 

Further, attendees discussed the need for public–private partnerships for applied development of 

technology to support effective EHS implementation. Stakeholders also suggested that the NNI

agencies better connect with regional, state, and local EHS activities and assist where appropriate in 

identifying and implementing best practices. On the international front, participants encouraged the 

NNI agencies to be more engaged in standards development organizations and to participate more in 

the OECD WPMN program of coordinated EHS research. Finally, the participants encouraged the 

Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology Subcommittee to consider creating an NSI on highthroughput screening to support rapid identification and characterization of hazards and exposures. 

Infrastructure Needs

Co-Chairs: Robert Rudnitsky (National Institute of Standards and Technology) and Donald Tennant

(Cornell Nanoscale Science and Technology Facility)

The infrastructure needs breakout sessions were attended by representatives from government, 

national labs, and academia, including university education networks and user facilities. The topics 

addressed in the discussions fell into two distinct themes: physical infrastructure and formal and 

informal education.

One of the core concepts that shaped the discussion on physical infrastructure was the idea that 

nanotechnology R&D is accelerating and expanding. Therefore, participants noted, it is important to 

continually engage with users to ensure that their needs are met. Stakeholders urged that the funding 

for well-utilized shared facilities needs to be institutionalized to meet the long-term needs of the 

community. Rising costs of staff salaries, process materials, and safety measures due to inflation are 

often overlooked in flat funding planning. Further, capital investment is needed to increase flexibility, 

meet changing research needs, and extend the life of the highly invested facilities.

Stakeholders recognized that many startup companies rely on user facilities to develop their products. 

Given the critical role that these facilities play in research, development, and commercialization, 

breakout session attendees recommended that (1) facilities should be better equipped than those in 

start-up companies and small and medium enterprises; (2) NNI agencies with small business funding 

promote and seed the use of facilities to accelerate progress and improve the chance for successful 

commercialization; and (3) NNI facilities better engage with industry. Promotion of shared user 

facilities would be improved with an intelligent web-based service that informs and differentiates 

services among the various infrastructure options. 

Shared user facilities not only provide a key technical service but also create a community of shared 

ideas by mixing researchers from different disciplines. However, participants noted several steps that 
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could be taken to improve the efficacy and efficiency of user facilities. These include grants that allow 

smaller facilities to use the equipment replaced by larger facilities as well as the development of better 

metrology tools. Finally, some participants recommended the creation of an open facility or a 

distributed virtual facility for synthesizing materials to support the Materials Genome Initiative. 

Education is a critical factor in the success of the NNI. Stakeholders argued that both formal and 

information education approaches need to be continued, supported, and expanded. The importance 

of informal education programs in helping the public understand the basic principles of nanoscience 

was noted. A well-informed public will be able to accurately weigh the opportunities of 

nanotechnology against any potential impacts. Attendees also suggested that the NNI publicize

nanotechnology success stories. Finally, several participants recognized that exposure to 

nanotechnology concepts could ignite students’ enthusiasm for science, technology, engineering, and 

mathematics (STEM) topic and careers.

Formal nanotechnology education is needed at multiple academic levels. In K–12 programs, 

nanotechnology-based curricula can be used to support student comprehension of crucial concepts 

from chemistry, physics, and biology. One participant further noted that associate-level, 

undergraduate, and post-graduate education should support the multidisciplinary nature of 

nanotechnology. There was particular enthusiasm in the group for educational approaches that 

extend beyond the traditional classroom. Possible alternatives include online courses, computer 

simulations of nanoscale phenomena, and remote access to nanoscience equipment.

Ethical, Legal, and Societal Implications

Co-Chairs: David Berube (North Carolina State University) and Fred Kronz (National Science 

Foundation)

Participants in the ELSI breakout session represented academia, government, industry, and 

nongovernmental organizations. The discussion was wide-ranging and addressed, among other 

topics, barriers and opportunities to engaging the public and supporting ELSI research. 

Over the last ten years, the social science of nanotechnology has been established. Metrics 

documenting this transformation include the number of professional associations, the population of 

international scholars, the body of social science scholarship associated with nanotechnology, and the 

range of methods (descriptive, qualitative, and quantitative) used, including the use of mixed 

methods. For these reasons, stakeholders noted that the community is well-poised to address key ELSI 

issues associated with nanotechnology growth, including engagement, equity, governance, 

innovation, policy, risk perception and communication, and values. Some of the noteworthy successes 

have been numerous productive engagement exercises involving multiple stakeholder communities. 

Embedding social scientists within the laboratory affects views on a variety of social issues and the 

trajectory of nanotechnology research. Improving collaboration between laboratory and social 

scientists has co-shaped the understanding of socio-technical systems as they relate to 

nanotechnology. Breakout session attendees noted that these relationships need to be cultivated and 

enhanced as nanotechnology matures.

In the next three to five years, stakeholders envision a number of specific, pertinent challenges and 

requirements:
APPENDIX B. 2013 NNI STRATEGIC PLANNING STAKEHOLDER WORKSHOP SUMMARY

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• Public exposure to risk messages has traditionally been managed by the mass media, but 

newer forms of digital media (such as blogs and news accumulators) have supplemented, and 

in some cases, replaced mass media. 

• Deeper research studies on public perceptions of nanotechnology need to be conducted; in 

particular, scientists need to understand why members of the public perceive risk information 

the way they do. Further, phenomena such as “probability neglect” and “confirmation bias” 

need to be examined. 

• Deeper research studies are also needed on experts’ perceptions of the public (e.g., the public 

is not homogenous; public attitudes are context-specific; experts, while part of the public, may 

not represent public attitudes; and the public can be subject-matter experts). 

• A high-priority challenge concerns being proactive, rather than reactive, to potential 

nanotechnology-related risk events.

• Another high-priority challenge is advancing innovation with research in emergent, salient, 

and exigent societal needs, defined in part by the public. 

Participants highlighted the fact that institutionalized support for social science research is needed to 

meet the challenges above. This may be accomplished via a vision for future challenges and solutions, 

a greater number of experts, socio-technical infrastructure, and an increased capacity for public 

deliberation. Stakeholders recommended that the NNI agencies create and sustain opportunities for 

the public to participate in life cycle analysis. The inclusion of social scientists in broad impact 

assessment of overall NNI effectiveness was suggested; the roles of social scientists are multiple in 

nature—analysts, translators, integrators, facilitators, and colleagues. 

Commercializing Nanotechnology

Co-Chairs: Michael Meador (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) and Skip Rung (Oregon 

Nanoscience and Microtechnologies Institute)

The focus of this session was on ways that NNI agencies can facilitate commercialization of 

nanotechnology-based discoveries. The breakout session was well attended by a broad spectrum of 

scientists, engineers, and business development professionals from the Federal Government; industry; 

regional, state and local partnerships; and academia.

Some “lessons learned” can be gleaned from successful models for commercialization of emerging 

technologies. Government agencies, universities, and industry are taking some innovative approaches 

in this area, including providing licenses to startup companies at minimal or no up-front cost and 

providing matching funds for third-party investment in successful Small Business Innovation Research 

(SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer Research (STTR) activities (e.g., the National Science 

Foundation’s SBIR/STTR Supplemental Funding Program).

47

Successful commercialization of nanotechnology requires strong interactions between technology 

innovators and end users. Stakeholders noted that NNI agencies could promote such interactions by 

incorporating them in review criteria for new and renewal grant proposals and including industrial 

scientists as members of proposal review panels.

 

47 www.nsf.gov/eng/iip/sbir/Supplement
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A greater awareness of promising nanotechnologies under development is a critical component to 

facilitate technology transfer and commercialization. Participants recommended that the NNI agencies 

and NNCO foster this exchange by providing a forum to publicize available technologies as well as 

industry “grand challenges” to focus nanotechnology R&D efforts.

Breakout session attendees highlighted the need for greater NNI agency participation and 

coordination in standards and specification activities to remove barriers to nanotechnology 

commercialization. It was noted that the development of harmonized standards is needed, both 

within the United States and internationally. Participants argued that reviews of existing specifications 

used by Federal agencies are needed to remove unneeded or outdated specifications that limit 

opportunities for insertion of new technologies. Based on the discussion points above, stakeholders 

noted that the following high-level concepts merit serious consideration going forward:

• Opportunity Discovery. The terms “commercializing research” and “technology transfer” do not 

adequately capture the importance and difficulty of market pull and customer traction to a 

new company or product line. Professional investors (including corporations) work to reduce 

not just technology risk, but also management-team, market, and financial risk. Participants 

suggested that NNI agencies implement strategies and set commercialization objectives (e.g., 

leveraged capital funding, jobs) and success metrics that will result in businesses that are 

attractive to private investors.

• Corporate Engagement. With a few exceptions (e.g., semiconductor and defense industries), 

industry engagement with NNI projects (sponsored research, corporate venture capital

investments) seems sporadic and well below potential. Breakout session attendees 

recommended that NNI agencies engage with industry to discover what companies require in 

order to deploy their R&D funds.

• Regional, State, and Local Partnership Funding. States and regions are hungry for innovationbased economic development, and some are funding nanotechnology initiatives focused on 

commercialization. Participants suggested that NNI agencies look at this as a type of 

consortium opportunity with essential Federal and local early-stage funding and 

commercialization assistance components.

• Regulatory Science. Regulation protects the public but may also create formidable uncertainty 

and cost barriers, especially for startups and/or (initially) small businesses. Stakeholders noted 

that a scientific and future-oriented approach to harmonized and minimally intrusive 

regulation is needed.

Technical Challenges

Co-Chairs: Ali Shakouri (Purdue University) and David Stepp (U.S. Army Research Office)

The Technical Challenges breakout sessions were attended by nearly equal numbers of academic, 

industry, and government representatives and resulted in very productive and engaging discussions.

Although the breakout sessions were framed differently each day, the discussions led to common key 

technical challenges and related suggestions. 

Stakeholders acknowledged the significant progress and breadth of nanotechnology-related R&D

activities as well as the general transition from passive nanoparticles to more complex structures and 

systems. However, participants identified concurrent scale-up with increased functionality as a 
APPENDIX B. 2013 NNI STRATEGIC PLANNING STAKEHOLDER WORKSHOP SUMMARY

 71 

remaining challenge. Application of nanotechnology in food and agriculture was broadly identified as 

an emerging opportunity area by the attendees. The group identified the most significant technical 

challenges facing the community as: 

• The ability to make nanoparticles and structures with exquisite atomic-level control.

• The ability to fully characterize nanoparticles and nanostructures at the atomic level.

• The ability to model nanoparticles, structures, and systems at the atomic level.

With regard to the NNI agencies’ R&D portfolio, the attendees identified the importance of identifying 

targets and focus areas that are unique to nanotechnology. They acknowledged the need for both 

individual and large-center support across the spectrum of fundamental to goal-oriented and applied 

nanotechnology research, as well as a unique opportunity to fund small interdisciplinary teams of 3–4 

researchers. They articulated the necessity for big ideas or grand challenges to drive the overall 

community and help define the Initiative, while also allowing room for discovery. The importance of 

engaging new investigators in nanotechnology R&D was highlighted, especially in challenging budget 

times where established researchers may be more competitive. The attendees also emphasized the 

desire for more stakeholder engagement, including in workshops and webinars. 

The participants discussed the challenges associated with developing meaningful assessment and 

raised questions regarding the quality and value of previous reviews. They recommended that NNI 

agencies pursue additional means of evaluation incorporating a dynamic exchange of information.

They also recommended that reviews be aggressive in identifying successes and challenges.

The stakeholders expressed strongly the needs to clearly define the purpose and role of the NSIs and to

clearly articulate the evaluation criteria for the establishment, review, and eventual transition of 

individual NSIs. They also suggested the inclusion of interdependent NSI goals and the evaluation of 

progress against those goals to further enhance cross-agency collaboration. It was recommended that

all new NSIs define measurable goals and identify measures of success against which they would be 

evaluated in the initial white papers or proposals to the NSET Subcommittee. Suggested future topic 

areas included scalable manufacturing, health/food/nutrition, and nanotechnology for mobility.

Discussion included the importance of international collaboration on standards, communication, and 

leveraging expertise and unique resources. Recommended mechanisms included federally funded 

sabbaticals for U.S. researchers to work overseas and other forms of scientist exchange. Increased 

support for scientific meetings and conferences held in the United States was suggested as an 

effective way to facilitate productive interactions and communication among scientists from around 

the world. Travel restrictions and visas were mentioned as challenges.

Cross-Cutting Themes

Several recurrent themes emerged from the discussions across the breakout sessions. Participants 

repeatedly emphasized the need to further support collaborations across disciplinary, cultural, and 

sectoral boundaries. Multiple breakout sessions also noted the complementary needs to set clear 

metrics for success and to publicize successes when they are achieved. The need for international 

cooperation in the development of harmonized standards was also emphasized across the sessions. 

Finally, several groups requested additional support for forums where the nanotechnology 

community can engage across communities and with the Federal Government. 
 72 

Appendix C: Overview of Former Program 

Component Areas (PCAs) and Comparison

with Revised PCAs

Table C-1: Program Component Areas for Fiscal Years 2006–2014

No. PCA Title Description

1 Fundamental 

Nanoscale 

Phenomena and 

Processes

Discovery and development of fundamental knowledge pertaining to new 

phenomena in the physical, biological, and engineering sciences that occur 

at the nanoscale. Elucidation of scientific and engineering principles related 

to nanoscale structures, processes, and mechanisms.

2 Nanomaterials Research aimed at the discovery of novel nanoscale and nanostructured 

materials and at a comprehensive understanding of the properties of 

nanomaterials (ranging across length scales, and including interface 

interactions). R&D leading to the ability to design and synthesize, in a 

controlled manner, nanostructured materials with targeted properties.

3 Nanoscale Devices 

and Systems

R&D that applies the principles of nanoscale science and engineering to 

create novel, or to improve existing, devices and systems. Includes the 

incorporation of nanoscale or nanostructured materials to achieve improved 

performance or new functionality. To meet this definition, the enabling 

science and technology must be at the nanoscale, but the systems and 

devices themselves are not restricted to that size.

4 Instrumentation 

Research, Metrology, 

and Standards for 

Nanotechnology

R&D pertaining to the tools needed to advance nanotechnology research 

and commercialization, including next-generation instrumentation for 

characterization, measurement, synthesis, and design of materials, 

structures, devices, and systems. Also includes R&D and other activities 

related to development of standards, including standards for nomenclature, 

materials characterization and testing, and manufacture.

5 Nanomanufacturing R&D aimed at enabling scaled-up, reliable, and cost-effective manufacturing 

of nanoscale materials, structures, devices, and systems. Includes R&D and 

integration of ultra-miniaturized top-down processes and increasingly 

complex bottom-up or self-assembly processes.

6 Major Research 

Facilities and 

Instrumentation 

Acquisition

Establishment of user facilities, acquisition of major instrumentation, and 

other activities that develop, support, or enhance the Nation’s scientific 

infrastructure for the conduct of nanoscale science, engineering, and 

technology R&D. Includes ongoing operation of user facilities and networks.

7* Environment, Health, 

and Safety

Research primarily directed at understanding the environmental, health, and 

safety impacts of nanotechnology development and corresponding risk 

assessment, risk management, and methods for risk mitigation.

8* Education and 

Societal Dimensions

Education-related activities such as development of materials for schools, 

undergraduate programs, technical training, and public communication, 

including outreach and engagement. Research directed at identifying and 

quantifying the broad implications of nanotechnology for society, including 

social, economic, workforce, educational, ethical, and legal implications. 

* From 2004 – 2007, PCAs 7 and 8 were grouped as a single PCA called “Societal Dimensions.”
APPENDIX C: OVERVIEW OF FORMER PCAS AND COMPARISON WITH REVISED PCAS

 73 

Table C-2 presents a simple crosswalk between the former and new program component areas (PCAs) 

for continuity and historical reference. A few comments may help clarify the significance of the 

revisions. 

Nanomaterials often has been a problematic PCA in that much research associated with novel 

nanomaterials and materials processing has been conducted at the fundamental research level. 

Moreover, this research may be conducted either within broader, basic research projects or as 

exploratory efforts associated with the production of novel nanomaterials or nanostructures and 

examination of their properties, but without specific applications in mind. In contrast, other work in 

this area is focused on R&D of nanomaterials and related processing, driven by specific applications or 

the achievement of specific properties. The new PCAs attempt to make a clearer separation between 

efforts that are fundamental and generic (foundational) and those that are applicative and specific.

Nanomanufacturing has proven to be exceptionally difficult to neatly categorize and clearly define for 

fiscal tracking. Research associated with processing and design technologies for microelectronic 

devices, for instance, is typically categorized and tracked with Nanoscale Devices and Systems. This 

delineation is both realistic and appropriate. Although it is possible and useful at times to identify R&D 

that facilitates processing and manufacturing, it appears preferable within PCAs to consider R&D 

foundational when generic and applicative when suitably so. Nanomanufacturing is and is expected 

to remain an extremely important part of the Initiative as evidenced by the establishment of a

Nanotechnology Signature Initiative (NSI) focused on it. Nevertheless, with respect to the broader 

PCAs, it seems preferable to track processing and manufacturing efforts where they support broader 

projects and programs. 

Finally, the Education and Societal Dimensions PCA has not been as useful as originally expected in 

showing either the magnitude or significance of efforts in these very important areas. Most research 

efforts have been associated with a very limited number of agencies and often within a subtextual 

part of the research thrust. Because PCAs are associated with funded R&D efforts, this PCA did not 

capture well the important related activities within the agencies that have not been part of R&D 

projects. It seems preferable, therefore, to report and track such efforts as they relate to established 

goals and objectives, whether primarily R&D or otherwise. As far as the R&D funding for such efforts is 

concerned, the expectation is that funding will be largely captured in the Foundational Research PCA. 
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Table C-2: Crosswalk between Former and Revised PCAs48

2.

Foundational 

Research

3.

NanotechnologyEnabled 

Applications, 

Devices, and 

Systems

4.

Research 

Infrastructure 

and 

Instrumentation

5.

Environment,

Health, and 

Safety

1. Fundamental 

Nanoscale 

Phenomena and 

Processes



2. Nanomaterials  

3. Nanoscale Devices 

and Systems

 

4. Instrumentation 

Research, Metrology, 

and Standards for 

Nanotechnology



5. Nanomanufacturing   

6. Major Research 

Facilities and 

Instrumentation 

Acquisition



7. Environment, Health, 

and Safety



8. Education and 

Societal Dimensions

  

KEY:  Correspondence between former and revised PCAs

 

48 All activities specifically contributing to an NSI are now tracked under PCA 1: Nanotechnology Signature 

Initiatives. For example, a project that was previously listed under PCA 1: Fundamental Nanoscale Phenomena 

and Processes could potentially be categorized under PCA 1: Nanotechnology Signature Initiatives (if the scope

of the project falls under an NSI) or PCA 2: Foundational Research (if the scope does not fall under an NSI) in the 

new system.
 75 

Appendix D. Abbreviations and Acronyms

the Act The 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act of 2003

ARS Agricultural Research Service (USDA) 

ATSDR Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (DHHS) 

BIS Bureau of Industry and Security (DOC) 

BRAIN Initiative Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies Initiative

CNST Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology (DOC/NIST) 

CoT Committee on Technology (NSTC) 

CNS-ASU Center for Nanotechnology in Society at Arizona State University

CNS-UCSB Center for Nanotechnology in Society at University of California Santa Barbara

CPSC Consumer Product Safety Commission

CSREES Cooperative State, Research, Education, and Extension Service (now USDA/NIFA)

DHS Department of Homeland Security

DHHS Department of Health and Human Services

DOC Department of Commerce

DOD Department of Defense

DOE Department of Energy

DOEd Department of Education

DOI Department of the Interior

DOJ Department of Justice

DOL Department of Labor

DOS Department of State

DOT Department of Transportation

DOTreas Department of the Treasury

EDA Economic Development Administration (DOC) 

EHS environment(al), health, and safety

ELSI ethical, legal, and societal implications (of nanotechnology)

ENM engineered nanomaterial

EOP Executive Office of the President

EPA Environmental Protection Agency

ETIPC Emerging Technologies Interagency Policy Coordination Committee

FDA Food and Drug Administration (DHHS) 

FHWA Federal Highway Administration (DOT) 

FS Forest Service (USDA) 

GIN Global Issues in Nanotechnology (former NSET working group) 

IC Intelligence Community

IEC International Electrotechnical Commission

ISO International Organization for Standardization

LED light-emitting diode

MGI Materials Genome Initiative

nanoEHS nanotechnology-related environment(al), health, and safety

NASA National Aeronautics and Space Administration

NCI National Cancer Institute (DHHS/NIH) 

NCL Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory (DHHS/NIH/NCI)

NCNR NIST Center for Neutron Research (DOC/NIST)

NEHI Nanotechnology Environmental and Health Implications Working Group (NSET) 
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NEP Nanotechnology-enabled product

NIEHS National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (DHHS/NIH) 

NIFA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA)

NIH National Institutes of Health (DHHS)

NIJ National Institute of Justice (DOJ) 

NILI Nanomanufacturing, Industry Liaison, and Innovation Working Group (NSET) 

NIOSH National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (DHHS) 

NIST National Institute of Standards and Technology (DOC)

NKI Nanotechnology Knowledge Infrastructure (NSI) 

NNAP National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel (PCAST)

NNCO National Nanotechnology Coordination Office

NNI National Nanotechnology Initiative

NNIN National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

NRC Nuclear Regulatory Commission

NRC/NA National Research Council of the National Academies

NRI Nanoelectronics Research Initiative

NRO National Reconnaissance Office (IC)

NSET Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology Subcommittee of the NSTC 

Committee on Technology

NSF National Science Foundation

NSI Nanotechnology Signature Initiative

NSRC Nanoscale Science Research Centers (DOE program) 

NSTC National Science and Technology Council

NTRC Nanotechnology Research Center (DHHS/NIOSH)

ODNI Office of the Director of National Intelligence (IC)

OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

OMB Office of Management and Budget (Executive Office of the President)

OSHA Occupational Safety and Health Administration (DOL)

OSTP Office of Science and Technology Policy (EOP) 

PCA Program Component Area

PCAST President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology

R&D research and development

RSL regional, state, and local organizations

SAICM Strategic Approach to International Chemical Management

SBIR Small Business Innovation Research program

SciENcv Science Experts Network Curriculum Vitae

STAR METRICSTM Science and Technology for America's Reinvestment: Measuring the Effect of 

Research on Innovation, Competitiveness and Science

STEM science, technology, engineering, and mathematics

STTR Small Business Technology Transfer research program

TC 229 Technical Committee 229 (ISO) 

USITC U.S. International Trade Commission

USPTO U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (DOC) 

USDA U.S. Department of Agriculture

USGS U.S. Geological Survey (DOI) 

WPMN Working Party on Manufactured Nanomaterials (OECD) 

WPN Working Party on Nanotechnology (OECD)

National Science and Technology Council

Committee on Technology

Subcommittee on Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology

http://www.nano.gov