The workshop covered nanotechnology, which involves working with materials smaller than 100 nm. At this scale, materials exhibit different physical, chemical, and biological properties that can be exploited for various applications. For example, nanomaterials have more surface area, inducing more catalytic reactions and reactivity. The workshop demonstrated creating a hydrogen sensor using electrospun polyethylene oxide fibers coated with palladium and gold through sputtering to detect hydrogen concentrations.

1. Workshop: Nanotechnology
By Wilfredo Otaño
Nanotechnology is the science that works with materials within the scale of 100 nm
or smaller. This technology gives us the ability to understand and manipulate physical and
technological characteristics of systems. The physical, chemical, and biological
characteristics of materials differ at this nanometer scale, and scientists can have the
advantage of this and apply this technology for different purposes. An advantage of
nanotechnology is that materials have more superficial area, and this can induce more
catalytic reactions, more toughness of materials, and a higher chemical reactivity. In the
lab I saw the creation of a censor that detects hydrogen. First of all, we used a substrate of
silicon that was oxidized by heat. Above the substrate there were fibers of polyethylene
oxide that were created by electrospining. This process uses an electrical charge to draw
very fine fibers from a liquid. Then, using the technique of sputtering, which consists of
bombarding a substrate with materials, creating thin films, a layer of palladium was added
to the fibers. Afterwards, it was bombarded again with gold at the ends of the censor, but
this time a mask was placed in the center of it. Then, the mask was removed, and the
censor was tested. Finally, it was observed how fast it detected hydrogen concentrations.