A Framework for Knowledge Management of Nanoscience & Technology in India

Global spending by various governments and the private sector in nanoscience & technology R&D is increasing over the years and reached about US$18 billion in 2009 ,and the estimated market opportunity for nanotechnology based products by 2015 is about US $1.0 trillion [1].To catch up with the rest of the world in nanotechnology R&D, the Indian government has also committed to spend about US $250 million during the XI^th five year plan period (2007 to 2012). Given the rapid pace at which the field of nanoscience and technology has been growing in recent times, and the concomitant explosive growth in knowledge being generated and information being shared, the nano community as a whole had been increasingly feeling the need for a reliable, comprehensive one-stop nano information centre which can search, categorize, analyze and disseminate the vast nanoscience and technology information, maintain a knowledge database and offer wide ranging nano informatics services. Undertaking all the above activities in an integrated manner encompasses one of the key dimensions of Knowledge Management (KM). To address the above KM requirement and need, the International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy & New Materials (ARCI), an autonomous R&D Institution under the Department of Science & Technology government of India, which has a strong R&D base for nanomaterials application development, recently has set up the Centre for Knowledge Management of Nanoscience &Technology (CKMNT) with partial financial support from the NANOMISSION of the Department of Science & Technology, Govt, of India. The Vision of CKMNT is to harmonize the knowledge produced worldwide in the area of nanosciene & technology and make it available in concised form to all stake holders of the ´ nano ´community. In this paper, a conceptual framework for KM of nanoscience & technology being evolved by CKMNT and its application to assist th- ´Nano´ community stake holders, i.e researchers, industries, policy makers , funding agencies and the civil society is presented, with a few case studies on literature search and patent analyses of contemporary areas of interest.