Piscataway, NJ, USA --The IEEE is creating standards to facilitate the movement of nanotechnology innovations from a research to a market environment and to establish fundamental nanotechnology platforms that support accelerated growth of the sector. These standards address critical commercialization issues, such as nanoelectronics device design and characterization, as well as quality and yield in manufacturing. Overall, the IEEE Nanotechnology Standards Initiative seeks to identify:

* Nanoelectronic technologies likely to generate products and services having high commercial and/or societal value.
* Areas where new standards can aid rapid commercialization, technology transfer and diffusion into the market.
* People and institutions to lead and support IEEE nanotechnology standards projects.
One such standard is IEEE P1650?, "Standard Test Methods for Measurement of Electrical Properties of Carbon Nanotubes", will be the first to define electrical testing procedures and to suggest characterization tools for carbon nanotubes. This uniform metrics foundation is intended to help accelerate the emergence of nanotube-based devices in transistors and other nanoelectric components.

Other nanotechnology standards efforts are underway. IEEE P1670?, "Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) Techniques for Nanotechnologies", will establish recommendations for the measurements and analyses needed in CVD nanoscale processing. The anticipated result will be that data generated in research and destined for the production of electronic, thermal and power components are consistent and reproducible. IEEE has also formed the IEEE Carbon Nanotube Quality Testing Study Group to begin to define uniform protocols for nanotube characterization.

In addition, SEMI and IEEE have signed a memorandum of understanding to support each other's programs to create nanotechnology and MEMS (micro-electromechanical systems) standards. IEEE is also a member of the ANSI Nanotechnology Standards Panel Steering Committee, which has prioritized needs for nanotechnology standards and provides a venue for coordination of nanotechnology standards developments among organizations.

Anticipatory Nanotechnology Standards at the IEEE

Nanotechnology has begun to benefit from an IEEE strategy that creates standards well before the products they concern are produced. Such anticipatory standards help drive early commercialization in emerging fields and promote acceptance among producers, users and the public. This strategy is often implemented through a standing working group, which provides a forum to consider new standards projects, guide the development of white papers into standards, and revise existing standards. A notable example of the anticipatory standards strategy is the IEEE 802? effort, which has produced seminal wired and wireless networking standards for almost 20 years. Anticipatory nanotechnology standards, starting with IEEE P1650?, will first focus on material characterization methods and equipment. Standards for device and component fabrication and testing, and systems architecture and interoperability will follow.

An early step in this area occurred at an IEEE Standards Association meeting in November 2003 when participants from 10 countries constructed a framework for developing nanotechnology standards over the next three to five years. The meeting, the "IEEE Standards Association Nanotechnology Standards Roadmap Workshop", was hosted by NIST. The meeting output addressed the materials, devices and interoperability specifications needed to structure nanotechnology methods and processes so data is reported uniformly and results can be compared and verified. This will help researchers build on one another's findings, harmonize best practices and support those who develop and supply nanotechnology materials and processing and test equipment, as well as those who design and build products, subsystems and networks. In addition, an initial version of future nanotechnology standards needs was published in April 2003 by the IEEE Nanotechnology Standards Study Group.

The IEEE and Nanotechnology

The IEEE Nanotechnology Council is a multidisciplinary group formed to advance and coordinate the many nanotechnology scientific, literary and educational endeavors within the IEEE. It has become a focal point in the field and is helping to unite the global nanotechnology community. The Council supports nanotechnology-related lectures, symposia and workshops, publishes the "IEEE Transactions on Nanotechnology" and other periodicals, and sponsors nanotechnology standards. Its annual industry-wide conferences have been held in North America, Europe and Asia and covered such topics as nanoscale electronics, computing, data storage and materials.

For More Information

* See http://grouper.ieee.org/groups/1650/ for more information on the IEEE 1650? Working Group.
* See http://standards.ieee.org/announcements/pr_icnqtsg.html for information on the IEEE Carbon Nanotube Quality Testing Study Group.
* See http://standards.ieee.org/announcements/pr_p1670.html for information on the IEEE 1670? Working Group.
* See http://standards.ieee.org/announcements/pr_nanomap.html for information on the Workshop for a Roadmap for nanoelectronics standards.
* See http://ewh.ieee.org/tc/nanotech/index.html for information on the IEEE Nanotechnology Council.
* See http://www.ieeeusa.org/policy/positions/nanotechnology.html for a legislative outlook on nanotechnology in the US at the IEEE-USA web site.
* See http://www.ieee.org/organizations/pubs/transactions/tnano.html for information on "The IEEE Transactions on Nanotechnology."
* See http://standards.ieee.org/ to learn more about the IEEE-Standards Association.