Glossary of terms used on NANO Magazine

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BioMEMS

Miniaturization engineering or MEMS applied to biotechnology or medicine. In BioMEMS the number of materials involved is much larger than in a comparable electronics application. Both instruments and sensors are used in BioMEMS. Applications include: forensic science (e.g. DNA); clinical diagnostics (e.g. glucose in blood); product development (e.g. new drug); and quality control (e.g. pH of swimming pools).

Biomimetics

The concept of taking ideas from nature, operating on the nanoscale, and implementing them in a technology such as engineering, design, computing or other areas.

Bottom-up

Building organic and inorganic structures atom-by-atom, or molecule-by-molecule. Cf. top-down.

Brownian Assembly

Brownian motion in a fluid brings molecules together in various position and orientations. If molecules have suitable complementary surfaces, they can bind, assembling to form a specific structure. Brownian assembly is a less paradoxical name for self-assembly.

Brownian Motion

Motion of a particle in a fluid owing to thermal agitation.

Buckminsterfullerine

A sphere of sixty carbon atoms, also called a buckyball. Named after the architect Buckminster Fuller, who is famous for the geodesic dome that buckyballs resemble.

Buckyball

A popular name for Buckminsterfullerene.