Nanorobotics: Past, present, and future

Abstract

This chapter focuses on the state of the art in the field of nanorobotics by presenting a brief historical overview, the various types of nanorobotic systems, their applications, and future directions in this field. Nanorobots are basically any type of active structure capable of any one of the following (or any of their combination): actuation, sensing, manipulation, propulsion, signaling, information processing, intelligence, and swarm behavior at the nanoscale (10ƀ9 m). The following four types of nanorobotic systems have been developed and studied so far (a) large size nanomanipulators with nanoscale manipulation capability; (b) protein- and DNAbased bionanorobotic systems; (c) magnetically guided nanorobotic systems; and (d) bacterial-based nanorobotics. Nanorobotic systems are expected to be used in many different areas that range from medical to environmental sensing to space and military applications. From precise drug delivery to repairing cells and fighting tumor cells, nanorobots are expected to revolutionize the medical industry in the future.