Nanomaterials describe, in principle, materials of which a single unit is small in size (in at least one dimension) – between 1 and 100 nm.
Nanomaterials research takes a materials science-based approach to nanotechnology, leveraging advances in materials metrology and synthesis which have been developed in support of microfabrication research. Materials with structure at the nanoscale have unique optical, electronic, thermo-physical or mechanical properties.
Four pilot lines are focusing on the conversion of different types of feedstock and bio-resources: they cover the extraction from plants and functionalization of starting materials such as cellulose nanofibrils and nanocrystals, graphene and carbon-based bio-nanomaterials, and hybride bio-nanomaterials with inorganic nanoparticles.