Overview

Abstract

Summary The affirmation of nanotechnology in the economy and society has three main development stages: Nano 1 (?2000?2010) focused on uncovering phenomena at the nanoscale and semiempirical synthesis of nanocomponents; Nano 2 (?2010?2020) on science-based nanosystem integration for fundamentally new products; and Nano 3 (?2020?2030) on new nanosystem architectures and converging technologies platforms. In a relatively short time interval for a foundational science and technology, nanotechnology has made a significant impact on knowledge and in numerous economic sectors including semiconductor manufacturing, catalysts, medicine, agriculture, and energy production. The annual revenue growth rate increased from about 25% in 2001?2010 to about 40% in 2010?2014, suggesting that this last interval is the beginning of the ascendant section of the S-development curve. The global revenues of nano-enabled products have reached $1 trillion in 2013 according to industry surveys. We estimate that nanotechnology revenues would reach about 5% of the Gross Domestic Product GDP in developed economies by 2020 (with global nanotechnology revenues over $3 trillion market encompassing 6 million jobs) and over 10% of GDP by 2030.