Nanotechnology in education: Taking multidisciplinary nanotechnology into the classroom

This paper describes the structure and development of a multidisciplinary, cross-campus educational program at our institution that integrates nanotechnology to the undergraduate curricula of all majors in science and engineering. With nanoscience and nanotechnology crossing the limits of research labs and finding more and more commercial applications [1], it is in our best interest as a society to engage the young generations with nanotechnology and to provide them with a strong nano-focused background that allows them to become active participants in a field that will shape many aspects of our near future. Typical undergraduate (UG) programs in nanotechnology, however, are limited in the number of students they engage (because they are complete UG majors) or in the breadth of topics they cover (because they focus on specific fields such as nano-electronics, nano-fabrication, nano-materials, etc.) Our nanotechnology minor is innovative in that (i) it is accessible by students in all STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) majors and (ii) it covers all aspects of nanotechnology from nano-photonics to commercialization.