1. Context

Nanotechnology is generally defined as the creation and use of materials, instruments and systems that deal with matter in dimensions of the order of 1 to 100 nanometers, i.e. the size of molecules and supramolecular structures. Strictly speaking, nanotechnologies are revolutionary because, at the nanometer scale, materials and systems can reveal completely new characteristics that significantly alter their properties. The changes are so fundamental that the properties...