NANO INITIATIVE

2016 NATIONAL NANO INITIATIVE. Brain initiative

What is the NNI?

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See the NNI’s 2016 Strategic Plan

The NNI is a U.S. Government research and development (R&D) initiative involving the nanotechnology-related activities of 20 departments and independent agencies. The United States set the pace for nanotechnology innovation worldwide with the advent of the NNI in 2000. The NNI today consists of the individual and cooperative nanotechnology-related activities of Federal agencies with a range of research and regulatory roles and responsibilities. Funding support for nanotechnology R&D stems directly from NNI member agencies. As an interagency effort, the NNI informs and influences the Federal budget and planning processes through its member agencies and through the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC). The NNI brings together the expertise needed to advance this broad and complex field—creating a framework for shared goals, priorities, and strategies that helps each participating Federal agency leverage the resources of all participating agencies. With the support of the NNI, nanotechnology R&D is taking place in academic, government, and industry laboratories across the United States.

NNI Vision, Goals, and PCAs

The NNI envisions a future in which applications of nanotechnology will lead to a revolution in technology and industry that benefits society. Program component areas (PCAs) are the major subject areas under which the NNI groups related nanotechnology R&D projects and activities.

Coordination of the NNI

Learn about the structure, organization, and various departments involved in the Federal Government’s nanotechnology initiative.

NNI Budget

The 2020 Federal Budget provides more than $1.4 billion for the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI), affirming the important role that nanotechnology continues to play in the Administration’s innovation agenda.

Federal Legislation and Congressional Information

Learn about the annual authorization and appropriation process for the National Nanotechnology Initiative and nanotechnology-related Congressional hearings and events.

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• About the NNI

• What is the NNI?

• The NSET Subcommittee

• Nanotechnology Signature Initiatives

• Nanotechnology-Inspired Grand Challenges

• NNI R&D User Facilities

• NNI R&D Centers and Networks

• Interactive U.S. Nanotechnology Resource Map

• Current Solicitations

• Environmental, Health, and Safety Issues

• Ethical, Legal, and Societal Issues

• International Engagement

• National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO)

• Acronyms

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Official website of the United States National Nanotechnology Initiative

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• &D Infrastructure

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Nanotechnology Signature Initiatives

To accelerate nanotechnology development in support of national priorities and innovation strategy, OSTP and the NNI member agencies have identified areas ripe for significant advances through close and targeted program-level interagency collaboration. This collaboration includes Nanotechnology Signature Initiatives (NSIs), which are multiagency initiatives designed to focus a spotlight on technology areas of national importance that may be more rapidly advanced through enhanced interagency coordination and collaboration.

Below are links to a progress review for the NSI Signature Initiatives, followed by pages with additional details on each initiative.

Highlights of the NNI Nanotechnology Signature Initiatives

These documents provide an update on the activities of the Nanotechnology Signature Initiatives.

Water Sustainability through Nanotechnology: Nanoscale Solutions for a Global-Scale Challenge

This nanotechnology signature initiative addresses the pressing technical challenges related to water quality and quantity, including increasing water availability, improving the efficiency of water delivery and use, and enabling the next-generation water monitoring systems.

Nanotechnology for Sensors and Sensors for Nanotechnology: Improving and Protecting Health, Safety, and the Environment

This nanotechnology signature initiative is exploring the considerable potential for nanotechnology to open the door to the development of inexpensive, portable devices that can rapidly detect, identify, and quantify biological and chemical substances.

Nanotechnology Knowledge Infrastructure (NKI): Enabling National Leadership in Sustainable Design

This nanotechnology signature initiative coordinates the nanoscale science, engineering, and technology communities around the fundamental, interconnected elements of collaborative modeling, a cyber-toolbox, and data infrastructure to capitalize on American strengths in innovation, shorten the time from research to new product development, and maintain U.S. leadership in sustainable design of engineered nanoscale materials.

Sustainable Nanomanufacturing: Creating the Industries of the Future

This nanotechnology signature initiative establishes manufacturing technologies for economical and sustainable integration of nanoscale building blocks into complex, large-scale systems by supporting product, tool, and process design informed by and adhering to the overall constraints of safety, sustainability, and scalability.

Nanoelectronics for 2020 and Beyond

This nanotechnology signature initiative aims to discover and use novel nanoscale fabrication processes and innovative concepts to produce revolutionary materials, devices, systems, and architectures to advance the field of nanoelectronics.

Nanotechnology for Solar Energy Collection and Conversion: Contributing to Energy Solutions for the Future

This nanotechnology signature initiative utilized the unique physical phenomena that occur on the nanoscale to help improve the collection and conversion of solar energy.