Brave new world of (nano)-sensing: the next technological revolution and Quantum-Pi’s sensors

1. Brave new world of (nano)-sensing:
the next technological revolution
and
Quantum-Pi’s sensors
Marek T. Michalewicz, PhD
Founder and Chief Scientific Advisor
Quantum Precision Instruments
Cairo, 5 December 2009 Asia Private Limited, Singapore

2. Déjà vu ....
“Each civilisation leaves behind the pyramid fit to its greatness. Examples
abound: Egypt, Aztec and Maya civilisations the Pompidou Centre Paris
the Parliment House in Canberra, Australia. Huge and monumental things
were done and do not pose the original challenge. XXI century has to be
celebrated with Very Small Pyramids. It is chemically and aestetically
convincing that the best building block for tiny pyramids would be C60
molecule commonly known as Buckyball. ..........”
“.......... The race of nations to dominate the World so beneficial in bringing
about Space exploration, landing of humans on the Moon, or collapse of
Communism and the end of The Cold War, is still on. The nation that wins
in microscopic world might very well be the nation to win the Globe.”
(mtm 1998)
Quantum-π – sensing the future

3. Motivation:
1. Sharing the vision of sensors revolution
2. Presentation of quantum tunneling sensing
devices from Quantum-Pi
3. Sharing experiences of running nanotech
early stage company for 10 years
4. Invitation to engage in joint research or
development
5. Seeking investments
Quantum-π – sensing the future

4. Vision
Future:
In few years from now sensor networks will be as ubiquitous
and pervasive as cellular phones are today.
Vision:
Prepare, position and grow Quantum-π to become global
company, “the powerhouse” in this market.
10 years rule:
So-called “overnight success” takes ~10 years.
Quantum-π – sensing the future

5. From idea to reality to common use
Electromagnetic induction:
Michael Faraday - 1831
street lights using this principle ~75 years later
MASER/LASER
Basov, Prokhorov - 1952/54
Townes, Gordon, Zeigler - 1953
LASER demonstrated by Maiman - 1960
Airplanes:
Wright brothers 1905
Quantum-π – sensing the future

6. Sensors - some applications
Sonobuoys and sonars: Displacement and tremor sensors in security
Navy, environment and biology perimeter systems, border protection, cargo
monitoring, seismology, mining, geology, tectonics
and nuclear test monitoring
High precision mask alignment systems, wafer
flatness profilers and stepper accelerometers in
microelectronic industry
Accelerometers:
manufacturing, aviation,
defense, aeronautics and
automotive
Quantum-π – sensing the future

7. More examples of the trend:
University of California, Berkeley: “Smart Dust project”
HP’s CeNSE project:
“Create the mathematical and physical foundations for the technologies
that will form a new information ecosystem, the Central Nervous System
for the Earth (CeNSE), consisting of a trillion nanoscale sensors and
actuators embedded in the environment and connected via an array of
networks with computing systems, software and services to exchange
their information among analysis engines, storage systems and end users.”
Foresight Institute: Open Source Sensing Initiative
The University of Washington
Pacific Ocean floor remote sensing using optical fibre cables and swarms of
autonomous vessels laced with sensors and observation devices.
Quantum-π – sensing the future

8. Brave new world of (nano)-sensing
• Sensing methods to effectively help de-mine unexploded
land-mines and shells in Egypt
• “ultra-sound” scans of Pyramids and other structures
• 24/7 real-time monitoring of health of water dams, bridges, roads, railway
tracks
• Continuos sensing and control of environmental conditions “at very small
granularity” - localised scale
• Point-of-delivery (plant) moisture sensing and watering systems
• Bio-medical diagnostics applications
• Environmental sensors embedded in mobile phones
• Oil & Gas: seismic, reservoir, well, “Smart” Oil Fields (Shell, Schlumberger,
Baker Hughes)
Quantum-π – sensing the future

9. Quantum Precision Instruments
Asia Private Limited
A high-tech company founded in 1999 and developing Nano Electro-
Mechanical (NEMS) sensors, wireless sensor networks and atomic precision
metrology nanoTrek® devices especially useful in:
oil and gas industry,
security, defense and military,
medicine and biotechnology,
aviation, maritime and navigation,
precision manufacturing and microelectronics fabrication equipment,
nanotechnology and scientific industries, and in
consumer products.
Quantum-Pi received the 2009 Frost & Sullivan Award for Technology
Innovation in Integrated Nano-Sensing
Quantum-π – sensing the future

10. Devices, Patents and Concepts:
1. nanoTrek® - a quantum tunneling based linear encoder of position, motion
and alignment
2. dynamic nanoTrek® – Nano Electro-Mechanical Systems (NEMS) sensors for
measurements of vibration, acceleration, pressure, flow, etc.
3. new designs for the AFM cantilevers that do not require optical metrology to
measure bending and torsions but utilize quantum tunnelling
4. 2-D tuneable diffraction gratings for atom beams, or a new type of an atom optics
chip
5. quantum tunneling photo-detector cross-grid arrays
Quantum-π – sensing the future

11. Collaborators:
Piotr Glowacki1 1: Quantum-π
Piotr Slodowy1 2: Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
Dr Miroslaw Walkiewicz1
Dr Ewa Radlinska1,2 3: Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge, UK
Dr Nancy Lumpkin1,3 4: University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
Dr Steven Bremner1,3 5: Institute of Micromechanics and Photonics, Warsaw University
Dr Frederic Green4
of Technology, Warsaw
Prof Zygmunt Rymuza5
N. Singh6 6: Institute of Microelectronics, Singapore
Dr S. Balakumar6 7: Institute of Materials Research and Engineering, Singapore and
N. N. Gosvami7 Department of Mechanical Engineering, National University of
Prof Dr. Herbert O. Moser8
Dr Ao Chen8
Singapore
Dr Linke Jian8 8: Singapore Synchrotron Light Source, National University of
Dr Shahrain bin Mahmood8 Singapore
Dr Jong Ren Kong8 9: Data Storage Institute, Singapore
Dr A. B. T. Saw8
Dr Zhang Jun9
10: Institute of Manufacturing Technology, Singapore
Dr Chen Wenjie10 11: Birck Nanotechnology Laboratory, Purdue University, USA
Tsung-Chi Chen11
Prof. Arvind Raman11
Prof. Ron Reifenberger11
Quantum-π – sensing the future

12. Scientific Advisers:
Prof. James Gimzewski Professor of Chemistry, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry,
University of California Los Angeles, USA
Prof. Harold G. Craighead Charles W. Lake Professor of Engineering, Professor of Applied and
Engineering Physics, Director, Nanobiotechnology Center, Cornell University,
NY, USA
Prof. Boleslaw K. Szymanski Professor of Computer Science, Director, Center for Pervasive Computing and
Networking, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY, USA
Prof. Zygmunt Rymuza Professor at the Institute of Micromechanics and Photonics, Warsaw
University of Technology, Poland
Prof. Derek Y C Chan Personal Chair in Mathematics, Department of Mathematics and Statistics,
The University of Melbourne, Australia
Dr Anthony Sasse M.B.B.S. (Uni of Melb), F.R.A.C.P.
Dr Halit Eren Senior Lecturer, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Curtin
University of Technology, Perth, Australia
Dr Nancy Lumpkin ex-Research Fellow, Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge, UK
Quantum-π – sensing the future

13. Quantum-π facilities in Singapore
Collaborations:
SSLS: Singapore Synchrotron Light Source
A*STAR
Agency for Science Technology & Research
IMRE
Institute of Materials Research & Engineering
IME
Institute of Microelectronics
DSI
Data Storage Institute
SIMTech
Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology
Quantum-π – sensing the future

14. Quantum tunneling
Tunneling of particles (electrons, protons, alpha particles) is an exclusively quantum
phenomena arising out of the particle-wave duality. It can only be explained by laws of
quantum physics. In the quantum realm particles like an electron can penetrate energy
barriers higher then the energy of a particle, and appear on the “other side” in a “ghost-like”
manner.
Quantum tunneling is a very well established natural phenomenon observed for example in
energy production in the Sun and stars, alpha decay of heavy nucleus and used in many
modern day devices such an Esaki tunnel diode, SQUID and the Scanning Tunneling
Microscope.
Several Nobel Prizes in Physics were awarded for discoveries and contributions related to
quantum tunneling effect:
 L.-V. de Broglie (1927, particle-wave duality)
 H.A. Bethe (1967, energy production in the Sun and stars)
 B. D. Josephson (1973, theoretical predictions of the properties of a supercurrent
through tunnel barrier, Josephson effects)
 L. Esaki and I. Giaever (1973, experimental discoveries regarding tunneling
phenomena in semiconductors and superconductors, respectively)
 G. Binnig and H. Rohrer (1986, design of the scanning tunneling microscope).
Quantum-π – sensing the future

15. Quantum tunneling: examples
Magnetoencephalography
Energy production in stars Scanning Tunneling Microscope
06 November 2003: NOAA's Space Environment
Center (SEC) has classified this flare as an X28,
making it in fact the strongest ever recorded.
Title : Carbon Monoxide Man
...The Sun’s core temp is ~13.6 MK. For hydrogen
Media : Carbon Monoxide on
nuclei the Coulomb barrier is roughly 0.1 MeV. Magnetoencephalography (MEG) is an
Platinum (111)
This corresponds to a temperature in excess of 1 imaging technique used to measure the
Zeppenfeld & Eigler (IBM)
GK! Luckily, tunneling and the distribution of magnetic fields produced by electrical
speeds among nuclei lower the actual temperature activity in the brain via extremely
required. So without tunneling even the Sun’s core sensitive devices such as
isn’t hot enough for fusion. superconducting quantum interference
devices (SQUIDs)

16. Gerd Binnig and Heinrich Rohrer, IBM Zurich Lab
Scanning Tunneling Microscope, Nobel Prize in Physics 1986
Quantum-π – sensing the future

17. Gerd Binnig and Heinrich Rohrer, IBM Zurich Lab
Scanning Tunneling Microscope, Nobel Prize in Physics 1986
Quantum-π – sensing the future

18. Chingwen Yeh
A Low-VoltageTunneling-Based Silicon Microaccelerometer
The general structure of the low-voltage
tunneling-based accelerometer
The SEM photograph of a tunneling microaccelerometer fabricated using
silicon-wafer-dissolved process and glass bonding. The picture shows the top
electrode, and the perforated proof mass partially visible under this electrode
Quantum-π – sensing the future

19. Tom Kenny, Stanford University
Tunneling Infrared Sensor
Quantum-π – sensing the future

20. nanoTrek ®: Principle of operation
Demo 1
Quantum-π – sensing the future

21. Market – product matrix
Oil & Gas Buildings, Microelectr Manufactu Automotiv Medicine Defence &
Roads, onics ring & e& Security
Utilities, Mining Aviation
Dams
Vibration
sensors       
Seismomet
ers    
Accelerom
eters      
Microphon
es    
Flow,
pressure
meters
      
Positional
metrology 
Quantum-π – sensing the future

22. Technology differentiators
Quantum-π – sensing the future

23. 8’ wafer fabricated at IME Singapore
Quantum-π – sensing the future

24. nanoTrek ® one plate set in a holder
Quantum-π – sensing the future

25. Prototype nanoTrek® devices fabricated at IME
90 nanometers
Cross section of nanowires
~80-100 micrometers
Electron Microscope Image
of human hair res
wi
a no
n
ct ing
n ne
Each nanowire is ~1/1000th width of o
pc
stri
of human hair! e tal
M
Quantum-π – sensing the future

26. nanoTrek® devices - scale analogy
43 km
Imagine a straight path 1
meter wide running the
entire length of 50 km,
and another one,
separated by 2 meters,
12,000 X
and another one…
Imagine 12,000 such 1m
50 km
wide and 50 km long
paths!
Now, shrink this picture
ten million times and you
get an image of one of
the hundreds of
nanoTrek® devices
Quantum-π – sensing the future

27. Product 1:
Quantum Tunneling Linear Encoder of Position
Unique metrology:
Target range: 20 cm
Target resolution: 0.1 pm
(with interpolation)
Current vs. X-axis translation
0.4
0.3
0.3
current [uA]
0.2
0.2
0.1
0.1
0.0
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600
effective translation [nm]

28. Quantum-π experimental set-up at SIMTech

29. Quantum-π experimental set-up at Purdue U.

30. Moire interference patterns

31. Dynamic nanoTrek® devices
Quantum-π – sensing the future

32. Proven Fabrication Processes
Cleland & Roukes, UCSB & CalTech
Quantum-π – sensing the future

33. Proven Fabrication Processes
Greatest challenges:
Cutting the quantum tunneling gap. But it’s been done!
Transfer of knowledge to Singapore from Cornell U. USA,
Prof. H. Craighead
Focussed Ion Beam milling:
example from University of Wales
H. Craighead et. al. Cornell University
Institute of Microelectronics have confirmed all process steps.
The detailed process has been documented in IME-Quantum-Pi project plan.
Quantum-Pi POC is to build functional devices using these established processes.
Quantum-π – sensing the future

34. nanoTrek® sensors technical issues:
• Sensing mechanism: quantum tunneling
• Fabrication
• Signal processing
• Communication: wired or wireless
• Power:
✴ power harvesting
✴ super-capacitors
✴ nano-batteries
✴ piezoelectric
✴ micro-mechanical power harvestin
• Packaging
• Integration
Quantum-π – sensing the future

35. Post Script: Nanocar
or “Where fantasy stops and reality begins?”
It started as a sheer scientific joke:
"Nano-cars: Enabling Technology for building Buckyball Pyramids",
M.T. Michalewicz, Annals of Improbable Research,
Vol. IV, No. 3 March/April 1998
Table of Contents for Volume 4, Issue 2, Mar/Apr 1998
Annual Swimsuit issue
Research:
The History of the Universe in 200 Words or Less Translated Ten Times or More
Nano-Cars and Buckyball Pyramids
Penises in the Plant Kingdom
Cat Tunneling
Does It Rain More Often on the Weekends?
earlier also presented at:
"Nano-cars: Feynman's dream fulfilled or the ultimate challenge to Automotive Industry" Publication
abstract: M T Michalewicz, The Fifth Foresight Conference on Molecular Nanotechnology, Palo Alto
(1997) Nov 5-8
Quantum-π – sensing the future

36. Post Script: Nanocar
or “Where fantasy stops and reality begins?”
BUT..... 8 years later !!!
10/20/2005
CONTACT: Jade Boyd
PHONE: (713) 348-6778
E-MAIL: jadeboyd@rice.edu
“Rice scientists build world's first single-molecule car
'Nanocar' with buckyball wheels paves way for other molecular machines.
Rice University scientists have constructed the world's smallest car -- a single molecule
"nanocar" that contains a chassis, axles and four buckyball wheels.
The "nanocar" is described in a research paper that is available online and due to appear in
an upcoming issue of the journal Nano Letters. ......”
Quantum-π – sensing the future

37. Company location and contact information
Dr Marek T. Michalewicz, Founder
Business conducted at:
36A Hong Kong Street, Singapore 059675
Telephone: +65 6236 2160
+65 9777 9599 (cell)
URL: http://www.quantum-pi.com
e-mail: marek@quantum-pi.com
Business Registered:
Quantum Precision Instruments Asia, Pte. Ltd.
Company Registration No. 200415706Z
10 Anson Road, #09-24, International Plaza,
Singapore 079903
Quantum-π – sensing the future

38. Dr Marek T. Michalewicz
Physics, Computation and Nanotechnology research record
1984-1987 - studies of the tunnelling potential in the Scanning Tunnelling Microscope (STM)
1986 April - visit to H. Rohrer’s group at the IBM Laboratory in Zurich
Studies of surface plasmons on metallic quantum dots of 20-600 nm radius on buckyball C60.
Theoretical identification of four molecular surface plasmons on C60
Extensive experience with Cray–2, Cray Y–MP, Cray C90, Cray J90, NEC SX-4 and SX-5 vector-parallel supercomputers
and Cray T3D, MasPar and Compaq alpha massively parallel supercomputers.
Massively parallel algorithm in the study of disordered condensed matter: O(1) parallel scaling, electronic
structure solved for a sample of ~500,000 atoms (TiO2) on SIMD computer (MasPar 16,000 Processors)
1995 - defined the Grand Challenge problem in Computational Nanoelectronics at the 1st Asian Supercomputer
Conference in Taipei, Taiwan
1996 - honorable mention - the Bell prize for supercomputing research
1998 - the fastest application on SX-4 with 32 CPU in the World: created program that scaled linearly, O(N), run with a speed of
43 GFLOPS/s on NEC SX-4 vector -parallel supercomputer with 32 processors (~67% theoretical peak speed) and computed
electronic densities of states for multi-million atom samples in minutes. The largest test computation performed was for the
electronic density of states (DOS) for the TiO2 sample consisting of 7,623,000 atoms.
Mathematically, this was equivalent to obtaining a spectrum of an n x n Hermitian operator
(Hamiltonian) where n = 38,115,000
1990 –2000 investigated morphology and size dependent electronic properties
of nanoparticles of rutile (TiO2). The largest sample studied had dimensions
of 48nm x 50nm x 32nm.
Quantum-π – sensing the future

39. Dr Marek T. Michalewicz, Founder
PhD (Physics), Institute of Advanced Studies, Australian National University, Canberra
MSc (Physics), LaTrobe University, Melbourne
University of Wroclaw, Poland (4 years, Physics)
University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, USA (Research Associate, 2 years)
22 years research experience following a PhD degree
27 years experience of scientific and commercial computing
Scientific consultant in the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research
Organisation (CSIRO) Supercomputing and High Performance Computing (10 y)
1997-2000 Principal Research Scientist at the CSIRO Mathematical and Information Sciences High
Performance Computing
2009 - present Director, A*STAR Computational Resource Centre, Singapore
Edited two books on Computational Life Sciences & Medicine and authored over 35 scientific
papers and book chapters and some 60 conference presentations in more than 12 countries
Fellow of The Australian Institute of Physics
Member of The American Physical Society
Senior Associate Foresight Institute (for Nanotechnology)
Quantum-π – sensing the future