Nano-origami

MIT researchers are developing what they call "nano-origami," a technique for folding materials into tiny 3D structures with edges that are a hundred times thinner than a human hair. Someday, their work could lead to minuscule motors and components for faster microprocessors. Mechanical engineering professor George Barbastathis and his colleagues pattern the 2D shapes using conventional lithography technology. Then they use an external magnetic field, a beam of helium ions, or deposit metal on the materials' surface to induce the shape to fold itself up into a 3D structure. From the MIT News Office:

The folded shapes can be fabricated with a few different types of material, including silicon, silicon nitride (a type of ceramic) and a soft polymer known as SU-8.

Once the material is folded, the tricky part is getting the faces to align properly. The researchers have developed a few ways to do this successfully: one uses magnets; another involves attaching polymers to a certain spot on the faces and melting them with an electric current, sealing the two faces together.

"Engineers use 'nano-origami' to build tiny electronic devices"

• [bcsizemo]

  All this nano stuff is making me ill…

  It’s like the wave of Web 2.0! stuff before the tech sector/economy exploded….

  I can appreciate what they are doing and all the research that goes into trying to work in a nano scale environment, but…has anything useful been at least designed yet? Oh I know there are about 5 billion things that nano could make or make better…it’s like a 21st century BASF. But I want some hard built devices using nano-tech. Then I’ll shut up and be happy.

• [Anonymous]

  These panels are 500 microns so I dont think this qualifies as “Nano-Origami”.

  A more appropriate example is the nanobox (100 nm a side) created at Johns Hopkins recently. You can read the original article in Nanoletters or a press report in New Scientist

  http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20327236.600-folded-nanoboxes-could-open-door-to-nanocircuits.html

• [neurolux]

  That could give me a wicked paper cut.

• [InsertFingerHere]

  What is this, a pop-up book for baby nanobots ?

• [UncommonSense]

  Wow. What the hell is it?

• [Alexandre Van de Sande]

  So that means we can finally fold something more than seven times? U-hey!

• [joel_kelly]

  that’s not nano! that μ symbol indicates micro. that’s micro-origami.

  yours in nano-pedantry,
  joel

• [dbarak]

  There is NO WAY I’ll ever get my pudgy little fingers to do that.

• [easilyamused]

  Nano? That image is a few millimeters across!

• [Chan Lee Meng]

  I’m just waiting for the nano paper crane. Someone’s already done a penny-sized one!

  http://www.geek.com/articles/news/surgical-robot-arms-create-penny-sized-origami-crane-20080616/

• [trr]

  True, but the picture was taken with a SEM so it has to be NANO!

• [Patrick Dodds]

  You can’t cut the paper in Origami …. just sayin’

• [wakaman]

  The Future will be nanoscale. Technology will disappear. It is going to be wonderful.

  Either that or it will destroy us all. It will be fun to watch, regardless.

• [Ian Holmes]

  reminds me of Eric Winfree and Paul Rothemund’s
  DNA origami