The tight budget of today’s nanotechnology facility start-ups makes the need for small scale cleanroom solutions as important as ever.

THE CHALLENGE
Over the past several years the term “nanotechnology” has been growing in the public consciousness. The science of small things holds the same allure that “microelectronics,” the buzzword of the 80’s, held at one time. Entrepreneurs see new generations of microelectronic devices, optics, pharmaceutical delivery systems, medical diagnostic devices, and an array of molecular level products about to breakthrough to the marketplace as “nanotechnology.”

Attend a nanotechnology forum or trade show and the exhibit floor is crammed with great ideas available for license or investment or partnering opportunities. What is rarely found is the much needed attention to detail regarding how the device is to be produced in a cost effective manner, to insure that initial investments are protected by profitable production. The requirement for a high production yield generally follows on the heels of the “gee-whiz” stage, characterized by “Wow, we did it....who woulda believed it possible?” First we invent/design, then we prototype, then we produce. Failure to produce economically carries the risk that others, who can produce at a profit, will be able to exploit the market window of opportunity.

As start-ups blossomed in “high-tech” corridors around the country a bit more than two decades ago, the search for product yield was a driver of cleanroom design and construction. Today the excitement of that era is returning through nano technology research and development. Not surprisingly, the manufacturing facility budget of today’s high tech nanotechnology start-up is as tight as the microelectronic counterpart of years ago. The requirement for cleanroom solutions “on a dime” is as important as ever.

Contaminants that negatively affect product yield can be particles or gases. The purpose of the cleanroom is to isolate the product from contaminants that cause product rejection by your quality control. This is done by keeping contaminants out of the facility or, should they enter, by removing them before they do damage. A variety of strategies are employed in large, well-financed facilities, but how does the start-up nanotechnology company, with relatively few dollars and many priorities, begin to address the need for an appropriate facility that will support small production runs of high quality, contaminant-free product?