Led by Mike Gorman of the engineering school's Division of Technology, Culture, and Communications, Robert Hull, Rosalyn Berne, James Groves, and Carolyn Vallas have been funded by NSF to examine select portions of the UVA MRSEC research program for the societal impacts of and ethical dilemmas posed by the program's research. As part of the grant's activities, Robin Catalano, a recent graduate of the Rochester Institute of Technology, will begin a masters degree project in which she investigates the directed self-assembly of metal oxide nanostructures on semiconductor surfaces. She will focus upon a metal oxide nanostructure material system and application of her choosing, considering the ethical and societal impact of her developments from the perspective of a participant observer. It is expected that Robin will work closely with faculty members Mike Gorman, James Groves, and Jack Hudson on her project.

Rosalyn Berne, assistant professor in the engineering school's Division of Technology, Culture, and Communication (TCC) is currently pursuing a research project sponsored by the NSF entitled, CAREER: Ethics and Belief Inside the Development of Nanotechnology. Prof. Berne is seeking to understand the evolving ethics of nanotechnology through a narrative analysis of discourse that emerges from inside of its development. The focus is on engineers and scientists who are working at the nanoscale to answer the questions: What do scientists and engineers define as the ethical issues connected to the development of nanotechnology? How, if at all, do scientists and engineers imagine confronting or addressing those ethical issues as they are defined? In what ways might religious perspectives and personal beliefs be a factor in the ethical framework of developing nanotechnology? Theoretically, molecular nanotechnology will mean the ability to build things from the atom up, to rearrange matter with precision, and to control its very structure. Nanotechnology promises to radically alter not just the physical, but the social, psychological, and spiritual dimensions of human life. Therefore, now is the time, in the theoretical stages of development, to begin to explore the ethical implications of molecular nanotechnology. The project funding began in March of 2002. Since that time, Prof. Berne has visited 12 different university sites to interview 48 individual principle investigators. These 60 to 90 minute conversations have been tape recorded and are being transcribed into printed text. The texts will be studied and analyzed for understanding about the human, personal, meaning-making elements of nanotechnology. The same 48 investigators will be interviewed twice a year for the next five years, so that the transformation and development of personal ideas, ambitions, thoughts and beliefs can be tracked, as the fields of nanoscience and nanotechnology continue to evolve. Prof. Berne is currently also writing a book proposal, which presents and identifies ethical guideposts that should be used in the development of nanotechnology. It argues that there are conceptual roadblocks to a fully conscious, ethical course of development, which are embedded in the narratives about nanotechnology. If we can identify and overcome these roadblocks, then the development of nanotechnology will more likely proceed on a strong moral grounding.

Lloyd Harriott of Electrical and Computer Engineering is leading a team of researchers that includes Jim Aylor, John Bean, Mircea Stan, Andy Hillier, Matt Neurock, and Lin Pu in a nanotechnology project that will address the issues of fabrication and integration of molecular devices with conventional electronic technology. The research team will address nanoelectronics from a comprehensive viewpoint by considering how nano-devices and nano-circuits can be assembled, modeled and designed with the requirements of large-scale integration and manufacturability in mind. The team will examine new combinations of electrode and active materials that are more compatible with conventional device and processing technologies. They will also develop black-box models of molecular devices. These models are essential if one is to anticipate novel computing architectures where molecular devices may function far differently from modern transistors, and where optimized circuit design may entail radically different patterns of device interconnection. A major part of the effort will be dedicated to education and outreach. The group thus plans to offer a compelling 3D animation-based website and a graduate level web-published "Frontiers of Nanoscience" course emphasizing the fundamentals of nano-device operation and their giga-scale integration.