Applied Research and Photonics (ARP) is developing a nanophotonic integrated circuit (nPIC) technology as a platform for several integrated devices and modules having applications in fiberoptic communication, computing and sensing. The proposed technology enables miniaturization, improved performance, and higher functional density on a chip. PICs are somewhat analogous to electronic ICs; however, unlike ICs, here information is processed by light signal. This ability has a tremendous benefit in accomplishing high-bandwidth, high-speed, and cost-effective optical chips that in turn create opportunities for more reliable implementation of optical systems for sensing and communication. The chip is a wafer-based component that can be processed using automated manufacturing techniques that are used in the semiconductor industry.

Applications of the nPIC include precision guided wave devices, multiplexer/demultiplexer, optical amplifier, modulator, and waveguide interconnect; thus yielding the waveguide as analogous to a “transistor” for optical signal processing. Another example of the proposed technology is a nanophotonic crystal interferometer that can be used as a smart sensor having capabilities of pico-scale sensing. Since many macromolecular moieties, upon adsorption on a suitable surface, may generally produce sub nanometer to few tens of nanometers of wavelength shift, the proposed interferometer can be used to detect the presence of a single macromolecule.

ConverTec Corporation’s presentation will focus on testing the integrity of flexible barrier materials utilizing a unique corona beam technology. This technology relates to a method and apparatus for the on-line, real-time, non-destructive 100% testing and measuring of porosity and anomalies of non-conductive thin flexible barrier materials and products made from these types of materials. These products include flexible barrier materials for pharmaceutical, medical, and food packaging. This also includes laminated adhesive materials to foils, paper and plastic film. Another area of compliance testing includes; surgical grade gloves, protective barrier gowns, condoms, encapsulation of electronic devices, commercial packaging, filtration media and much more.

The detection of viral and sub-viral sized (as small as 0.5 nanometers) apertures, voids, holes, blisters, contaminants, stress fractures, overlapped material, formulation defects and other anomalies are critical to the product’s protective or performance function. More particularly, this technology relates to an electronic measuring method and apparatus which utilizes electron beams in an open atmosphere (i.e.; Corona Beams) and electronic instrumentation to measure the constructive and destructive harmonics of the frequency loaded electronic corona discharge from the holes or anomalies in order to qualify, quantify and map their integrity or performance criteria. This is not a surface measurement. The technology measures through the material at a focal area or down to a pixel point.

The porosity, permeability or integrity of a non-conductive medical and consumer flexible barrier packaging material is determined utilizing a novel electron beam technology and electronic instrumentation in an open atmosphere. The electron beam developed in an open atmosphere maintains its prescribed frequency through the use of a nitrogen cover gas, ionizing the gas to create a corona beam. The corona beam discharge, maintained at a high positive voltage, forms from the holes or anomalies in the flexible non-conductive barrier material. The anomaly is detected and analyzed in order to determine the presence of viral and sub-viral sized voids or holes, as well as other anomalies such as blisters and bubbles. This process can be performed by the flexible barrier film manufacturer to certify a quality level. It can be performed by the material fabricator to ensure quality standards. It can also be performed by the product manufacturer that uses the packaging material to wrap their products and confirm the integrity of the sealed package by measuring the atmosphere inside the finished package. There are many other packaging applications that can utilize this technology for validation and integrity testing within the medical device, pharmaceutical and food industries.

Crystalplex is an early-stage company providing PLxBeads™, tiny plastic beads encoded with fluorescent nanocrystals for use in biomedical research. PLxBeads each carry a fluorescent “bar-code” and in research and diagnostic applications become an analysis platform which enables the measurement of multiple biological compounds simultaneously. They can be readily transformed into nanosensors providing test results from smaller samples with higher sensitivity, reduced time, lower costs, and less expensive instrumentation than currently possible. Crystalplex is targeting the decentralized testing market (approximately $1 billion) for its multiplexed research tests and point of care immunoassays.

Many new drugs are poorly water-soluble and present challenging formulation issues. Elan NanoSystems has developed and successfully commercialized a proprietary wet-milling technology capable of reducing the particle size of poorly water-soluble drugs to the sub-micron level. NanoCrystal® technology allows rapid in-vivo dissolution, enhancing oral bioavailability as well as providing opportunities for pulmonary, nasal, ocular, and injectable (IV, IM) administration. This technology has been proven to be highly scaleable as evidenced by three currently marketed drug products. NanoCrystal® technology provides an excellent formulation path for new chemical entities and provides opportunities for improvements and line extensions in existing products.

G7 Pharmaceuticals is a pre-seed, nanotechnology-based company dedicated to improving the quality of life for cancer patients. Our proprietary technology is a unique marriage of materials science, immunology, and nuclear medicine. We have developed a simple and safe method for preparing radioactive nanoparticles from clinically relevant isotopes. Each particle is smaller than a typical antibody but could carry up to 100 radioactive atoms. When coupled to molecules that bind to cancer cells, the resulting construct would be capable of delivering large amounts of therapeutic radiation selectively to tumor sites. This innovation holds great promise for the treatment of otherwise incurable cancers.

In this presentation, we will describe the potential of G7 Pharmaceuticals’ lead compound in our initial target markets and how our platform technology will afford future opportunities in other disease indications. We will discuss several technical and regulatory hurdles, many of which are shared by other nanotechnology-based drug delivery systems. We will also describe the unique issues relating to the creation of a distribution channel for a radiopharmaceutical. G7 is investing considerable effort to identify a research team, management team, and scientific advisory board in order to meet these anticipated challenges.

Glucose Sensing Technologies, LLC is developing glucose monitors for diabetic and acute care markets. Diabetes is epidemic. Stress hyperglycemia is common in the acutely ill, even non-diabetics. Studies indicate that close glycemic control can postpone or eliminate the debilitating effects associated with diabetes. Increasing evidence supports that maintenance of normoglycemia in the acutely ill limits organ damage after heart attack, stroke, traumatic brain injury and other conditions. The Company has licensed glucose sensor technology from the University of Pittsburgh. The sensors, actually photonic crystals, are a hydrogel containing an ordered, self-assembled array of nanoscopic colloidal particles and a molecular recognition agent specific to glucose. The sensor provides a specific spectral response indicative of glucose concentration. . The technology advantageously supports glucose monitoring for both diabetic and acute care markets.

Illuminex Corporation specializes in developing novel device technologies based on the unique optical and electrical properties of nanowire arrays. The nanowires have diameters from 20-150 nm and lengths up to 100 µm. The nanowires are made from gold, silver, copper, silicon and other materials on a multitude of substrate materials.

With an emphasis on nanotechnology, Illuminex is applying its nanowire engineering expertise to developing ultra sensitive sensors for biomedical applications, a photovoltaic thread for generating electricity from fabrics, and advanced thermal management systems.

Illuminex staff has extensive experience producing nanowire arrays using novel, low-cost engineering techniques. The arrays resemble brush bristles, but nanowires are 1/1000th the thickness of a human hair and have densities of 109-1012/cm2. The company’s focus is applying our background in nanoengineering to develop advanced technologies that address important needs with unsurpassed performance characteristics. One such technology in the research and development phase is an optical probe for sensing indicators of diseases such as cancer. This nanowire optical sensor will be a portable instrument that can rapidly measure proteins, DNA and other biological compounds indicative of the presence of disease and overall human health. The core nanowire probe platform is highly adaptable such that it can readily be engineered to target most any analyte of interest to the biomedical community.

The long-term opportunity for Illuminex is revolutionizing the medical diagnostics industry with a low-cost, easy to use, highly accurate sensing system. The challenge for a small company is to develop this enabling technology rapidly, while securing long-term relationships with larger, partner companies that can assist in marketing this technology buy may lack in house research and development nanotechnology.

Illuminex has a dedicated nanotechnology research and development facility at Millersville University. This relationship provides us with additional capabilities by collaborating with professors on our projects and an in-house work force through student internships.

As small-scale technologies emerge and are slated for commercialization, the critical challenge is scaling up prototypes into viable commercial applications. Many new technologies have faced this challenge, and many lessons learned from those experiences can be applied to the diverse fields comprising nanotechnology.

This paper details issues and strategies developed to improve the success of shifting from promising nanoscale research into profitable commercial production.

A key theme in this paper, based on findings from specific case histories involving nanotech research and manufacturing entities, is the contention that advancing nanotechnology research into commercial viability requires a clear understanding of the entire life cycle of technology development. A key target audience for this paper is senior management representatives.

Magnetic BioSystems (MBS) has developed a minimally-invasive, targeted drug delivery system using implanted magnetic devices to deliver replenishable patient-specific dosages of drugs encapsulated inside magnetic nanoparticle carriers. Our primary application is to develop a magnetic stent for treatment of restenosis, but future applications include tumors, aneurysms, and cell delivery.

The strength of MBS is its expertise in magneto-mechanical systems, and its imaginative approach to integrating functions into biomedical devices. The founders are well-educated, experienced entrepreneurs who are as familiar with the conference room as the laboratory. MBS is rooted in a wonderful academic environment in Drexel University, and is guided by experienced professors with faith in MBS technologies.

Along with Drexel University, MBS is currently in pursuit of multiple patents, and has numerous pieces of technology in legitimate proof-of-concept phases. As a business, our most promising technology is the magnetic stent. The conventional stent is already an FDA-approved product that has demonstrated vast improvement in the patient’s quality of life through non-invasive surgical procedures, and MBS hopes to expand upon this technology. This product fortuitously finds a home in a substantial market, which gives MBS the ability to obtain high financial yields in the short term.

The largest obstacle we currently face is the completion of the necessary animal testing of the technology in order to demonstrate that magnetic nanoparticles can be specifically targeted to devices implanted in the cardiovascular system, and that the nanoparticles can release sufficient amounts of drug to elicit a therapeutic effect. The surgeries have been designed and are currently being performed in cooperation with the outstanding faculty of the Department of Surgery at Drexel College of Medicine in Philadelphia. Upon reaching success in these studies, the technology can be expanded to human testing. In the long term, this magnetic drug delivery system could then be tested to treat variants of vascular disease, cancer, and pathologies requiring concentrated dosing of drugs. This puts MBS in a prime position for a lengthy presence within the medical device industry.

The emergence of nano-scaled enabling technologies is both exciting and promising. These scientific thrusts are being supported by a host of new multidisciplinary research facilities for nano-systems that are bringing together biologists, chemists, materials scientists, electronic engineers, physicists, computational theorists, life scientists, and others.

This session will: (1) provide an overview of several recent new research centers within the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) at US Department of Energy national laboratories and institutions of higher education in the United States; and (2) summarize the trends and lessons learned that are influencing the design and organizational structure of these new centers for research.

It’s becoming apparent that the semiconductor industry through its technology roadmapping process knows what is going to happen in the next ten years. Moore’s Law is going to be more and more difficult to meet because we are starting to hit feature sizes where quantum effects become dominant and leakage effects mean that efficiency and reliability suffer. The wavelength of an electron is around 10 nm. When two conductors are only a nanometer apart, an electron has an equal probability of being in either one. The industry will take a two-pronged approach – look for the replacement(s) for CMOS and also see what can be done to get the ultimate performance from CMOS. Nanotechnology will enable both of these approaches and the presentation outlines the application areas that will be dominant in the next 10 years.

Founded in 2002, the mission of NanoHorizons, Inc is to develop and produce applied nanotechnology solutions for the specialty chemical, drug discovery, microelectronics and health care industries. NanoHorizons’ nano-scale materials fall into three specific application areas:

Nanoparticles - NanoHorizons, Inc offers low-cost noble-metal particles that are uniquely compatible with polymer processing and delivers these in research and pilot production volumes. This product enables the economic manufacture of an array of consumer and industrial products with antimicrobial protection.

Mass Spectrometry - NanoHorizons, Inc has developed matrix-less laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry targets for drug development research. QuickMassTM disposable targets enable high-throughput screening of potential drug combinatorial chemistry products and general small molecule identification.

Sensors - NanoHorizons, Inc has created a family of devices that use nano-structured materials for such applications as respiration monitors and medical diagnostics.

Nanomat®, Inc. is a leading developer and manufacturer of a wide variety of nanomaterials. Nanomaterials possess many unique chemical, physical, and mechanical properties. Due to these beneficial properties, nanomaterials are being favorably considered for structural, non-structural, biomedical, and microelectronic applications. New applications for nanomaterials are also being discovered almost daily. Nanomat® employs various techniques to manufacture these nanomaterials. Nanomat® intends to be a technology and nanomaterials incubator to develop and spin off various nanomaterials into separate, profitable entities. The first spin-off, Nanova®, LLC is currently commercializing various nanominerals products, especially NanoTalc® for polymer applications. In this presentation, Nanomat®’s business, technology, and product strategies and potential near-term applications of nanomaterials will be discussed.

NANOVA®, LLC seeks to become the leading manufacturer of talc-based nanominerals. NANOVA® utilizes proprietary processes and techniques to manufacture NANOTALC® Superfine Powder, NANOCALC® Superfine Powder, and other nanosized minerals (e. g. mica, magnesium hydroxide, alumina trihydrate) that are collectively the “nanominerals.” NANOVA® has acquired the exclusive worldwide rights to a patent-pending process to produce NANOTALC® Superfine Powders from the Company’s parent, Nanomat, Inc. This process enables the Company to manufacture NANOTALC® particles, which range in size from 20-100 nanometers. NANOVA® will market NANOTALC® to the $6.8 billion automotive coatings, adhesives and sealants market and the $3.6 billion engineered polymers markets that are presently served by conventional talc, wollastonite, precipitated silica, fine-ground calcium carbonate and precipitated calcium carbonate. Furthermore, NANOVA® believes the new applications for nanominerals will increase significantly over the next five years fueled by (i) industry’s demand to develop innovative products, which possess unique physical properties attained by utilizing nanominerals and (ii) the savings and efficiencies realized by manufacturers that incorporate nanominerals in existing products and processes.

Presentation Abstract
In this presentation, Nanova® will present the latest information on a brand-new class on nanomaterials - NANOTALC®. We will also present an overview of our business model, manufacturing, processing, unique characteristics, and applications of NANOTALC®.

NANOTALC® Offers Superior Performance in Coatings and Polymers
Precipitated silica and polyols are used in the production of polyurethanes coatings. We have demonstrated that NANOTALC® Slurry, due to the hydroxyl groups on its surface, can replace parts of these additives while maintaining sheet clarity, at loadings to 20%. Loading the polyurethane film with 10% NANOTALC® powder will increase its barrier properties 500%. The resultant polyurethane film will have

• Increased strength and impact resistance
• Improved barrier properties
• Improved scratch resistance
• Improved mar resistance
• Improved chemical resistance
• Increased thermal stability
• Improved corrosion resistance

Plextronics SM, Inc.’s mission is to drive the world’s organic electronic devices to broad market commercialization. Such devices include plastic chips, polymer solar cells and organic lights and sensors. Our device physics experts have an intimate understanding of the relationship between structure-property relationships of conductive polymers and the resulting device performance at the nano-molecular level. This knowledge is applied through Plexcore™ technology. The ability to control the variables of polymer design, formulation, morphological control and processing enables technical solutions that cost effectively maximizes device efficiency and performance.

Y-Carbon is a spinout of Drexel University, founded in 2004, which aims at launching the mass production of its state-of-the-art supercapacitors. Y-Carbon’s supercapacitor is lighter, capable of storing more energy and capable to take or deliver energy faster than any other supercapacitors available on the market, irrespective of their price. The superior properties of Y-Carbon’s supercapacitor come from technological innovations in the synthesis of a new breed of nano-cellular carbon designed to be used as an electrode material in supercapacitors. The company will primarily focus on the global market of energy storage devices used in hybrid electrical vehicles. Small volume defense applications are currently being explored.