Korea’s Big Breakthrough in Solar Batteries Based on Tiny Technology

Nanotechnology is becoming a common term but few people people actually know what it means.

In simple terms, nanoscience and nanotechnology are the study and application of extremely small things. This concept can be applied to all the other scientific fields, such as chemistry, biology, physics, materials science and engineering. As such, it is misleading to categorize nanotechnology as a new field of science and engineering- it is a new perspective on how we think and understand what’s around us.

Innovation in nanotechnology started in the west with a 1959 speech by CalTech physicist Richard Feynman. At a meeting of the American Physical Society he described a process in which scientists would be able to manipulate and control individual atoms and molecules.

Professor Norio Taniguchi coined the term nanotechnology over a decade later during his quest for ultra-precision machining. In 1981, modern nanotechnology began with the development of the scanning tunneling microscope that could “see” individual atoms.

Photo Credit: European Coatings

Let’s fast forward to year 2012. Innovation in nanotechnology has shifted from the United States to Asia and Korea is taking a leading role in R&D and actual applications. The Korean government and Korean companies are working together on nanotechnology because of a belief that understanding the very small will lead to breakthroughs that are very big.

Under Korea’s Nanotechnology Promotion Act, the public sector assumes a leading role in the promotion of the new technology, focusing on the construction of infrastructure to support nanotechnology and related education and training programs. (www.kontrs.or.kr)

Yonsei University’s recent development of advanced solar batteries that can store far more sunlight using nano-pattern technology illustrates how this public-private charge forward is producing electrifying results. The new process replicates the principle of photosynthesis to convert sunlight into electricity. Sunlight can now be harnessed at a fraction of the cost of traditional methods.

Extending these efforts, NANO KOREA 2012 will be held for three days at COEX in Seoul from Aug. 16 to Aug. 18 (Saturday). This year’s event is expected to be the largest ever, with 550 booths and 350 companies from 11 countries are participating.

The event offers its popular online “matchmaking service” which assists companies to exchange information as well as help them set up meetings with exhibitors prior to the exhibition. Aren’t you excited to see the big picture of the small technology?