Difference Between Nanotechnology and Molecular Nanotechnology (MNT)

Nanotechnology focuses on matter at nanometer scale and molecular nanotechnology is a sub category of nanotechnology. If any research involves with objects less than hundred nanometers (nanometer is a billionth of a meter), it belongs nanotechnology. These fields are multi-disciplinary areas where knowledge of diverse areas such as physics, chemistry, engineering and biology are integrated.

Nanotechnology

Nanotechnology is engineering the nano-scale objects at molecular level using different techniques. Nanotechnology is all about techniques and tools to come up with a nano-scale design or system that exploit the properties at molecular level to be more accurate and efficient.

Using the knowledge on material behavior at nano-scale, nanotechnology exploits the properties such as strength, lightness, electrical and thermal conductance and reactivity to design and manufacture useful items. There are two approaches in nanotechnology known as top-down approach and bottom-up approach.

Nanotechnology is applied in many areas including IT, automobile, healthcare, textile and agricultural industries. Nanotechnology is expected to be the next revolution and many governments, universities and companies all over the world heavily invest on nanotechnology research.

Molecular nanotechnology (MNT)

Molecular nanotechnology is a sub category of nanotechnology, which focuses on manufacturing preferred molecular structures in bottom-up approach through guided reactions (or mechanosynthesis). Various concepts such as self assembly, molecular manufacturing, and nano robotics belong to this category.

The initial idea of molecular assembly was given by Richard Feynman, and Eric Drexler has developed the concept through many new ideas on molecular machines. There are many examples for molecular machines in nature and MNT tries to imitate this. Even human is a self assembled system of cells and DNA and protein molecules.