Nanoscale Communication:Energy and Information

Tap the existing world of biological nanotechnology by constructing molecular level, functional interfaces between living systems and synthetic technology

Domesticate life at the molecular and cellular level

Develop design and fabrication principles that enable the construction of synthetic devices, with capabilities that rival those of living systems

Bottom-up design and construction

Two Nanoscale Revolutions

Two Nanoscale Revolutions

• Technology, by human design

• Nanoscale dimensions beginning to be achieved

• Nanoscale properties harnessed in isolated examples

• Very limited capabilities compared with living systems

• Self-evolving

• Scientific understanding by discovery

• Intrinsically nanoscale

• Innumerable unique properties

• Capabilities generally can not be harnessed

Technology Biology

Existence is Established

• What is it about living systems that enables them to perform such tasks?– What is the technology?

• Can similar levels of functionality be engineered into synthetic systems?– Can these functionalities be harnessed?

• Can living and nonliving be integrated?

All aspects of life are naturally emergent physical properties

Nanoscale Communication:Energy and Information

5.1 Interfacing biological and nonbiological

5.2 Nano-macro junctions

5.3 Energy transduction at the nanoscale

5.4 Functional nanoscale systems and colonies

5.1 Integrating living and nonliving

• Actively communicate with and direct cellular behavior– Real-time two-way communication as in living organism– Decode biological communication principles– Establish synthetic (molecular-level) communication with living

cells

• Develop minimal self-sustaining (living or nonliving) organism– Bottom-up synthetic cell– Top-down minimal cell

Electronic Logic

Biological Logic

Biological Logic

Breaking the Living-Nonliving Barrier

Carbon nanotube

Synthetic cell membrane

Solidstate electronics

Living cell

Living receptor protein

Synthetic receptor protein

5.2 Nano-macro junctions

• Photonic– Plasmonics and subwavelength light control

• Electrical/Magnetic– Molecular wirebonds

• Mechanical – Chemomechanical motor drive

• Combining different approaches

Photon/Electron transduction

Nanotube LED with tunable junction location

Electron/Photon transduction at quantum limitNanowire optoelectronics

5.3 Energy Transduction at the Nanoscale

• Photonic, electronic, and chemical transitions– Photon – electron/ion coupling– Photon - chemical coupling– Etc.

• Stochastic processes, signals and noise– Biological signal transduction and information processing– Molecular motors

Molecular Motor

Molecular Motor Function: Capturing Fluctuations

5.4 Functional nanoscale systems and colonies

• Building nanoscale assemblies

• Self-regulating adaptive interactive systems – Metabolism– Information replication– Self-replicating life

• Ad-hoc networking among nanoscale devices

Bacteria quorum sensing: nano to micro

PNAS October 4, 2005 vol. 102 no. 40 14181–14184

Quorum sensing: nano to mega

Self-organiation on the megameter scale

Conceptual Origins

Maxwell: control randomness Mendel: use randomness

Conceptual Origins

Maxwell: control randomness Mendel: use randomness

Random biological evolution has developed technology that controls randomness