Advances in diagnostics are also predicted, as new machines based on protein and DNA detection allow small amounts of blood to be screened for numerous diseases simultaneously. In electronics, production of faster and better computers of Lilliputian dimensions. Already in production is a magnetic reader of nanoscale size that reads information from a hard disk. Also in production are prototypes of nano-sized memory chips with a thousand times the storage of current chips. In environmental science, nanomembranes that will filter contaminants or remove pollutants, or will be able to detect and detoxify contamination with chemical and biological agents.
Many challenges remain before scientists can unravel the secrets of the nanoworld.
But with new visualization tools at hand, laboratories across the country are taking leaps in understanding how atoms and molecules can be arranged at will. A number of laboratories are learning how to make molecules self-assemble in particular patterns, such as pyramids or pillars. This is seen as a crucial step in the quest to build novel materials atom by atom. Such materials would have one-sixth the density of steel, but 50 to 100 times its strength. Carbon nanotubes, many predict, may one day coat anything from cars to airplanes, imparting new strength and durability to their surfaces.