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This book presents a blueprint for researchers in the area of nanotechnology for chemical defense, especially with regard to future research on detection and protection. It addresses the synthesis of complex nanomaterials with potential applications in a broad range of sensing systems. Above all, it discusses novel experimental and theoretical tools for characterizing and modeling nanostructures and their integration in complex systems. The book also includes electronic structure calculations exploring the atomic and quantum mechanical mechanisms behind molecular binding and identification, so as to provide readers with an in-depth understanding of the capabilities and limitations of various nanomaterial approaches. Gathering contributions by scientists with diverse backgrounds, the book offers a wealth of insightful information for all scientists whose work involves material science and its applications in sensing.

On-surface synthesis is appearing as an extremely promising strategy to create organic nanoarchitectures with atomic precision. Molecular building blocks holding adequate functional groups are dosed onto surfaces that support or even drive their covalent linkage. The surface confinement and the frequent lack of solvents (most commonly being performed under vacuum conditions) create a completely new scenario fully complementary to conventional chemistry. In a pedagogical way and based on the most recent developments, this volume presents our current understanding in the field, addressing fundamental reaction mechanisms, synthetic strategies to influence the reactions according to our needs, as well as the ultimate growth and characterization of functional materials.Verging on chemistry, physics and materials science, the book is aimed at students and researchers interested in nanochemistry, surface science, supramolecular materials and molecular devices.Chapters'Mechanistic insights into surface-supported chemical reactions','Reactivity on and of Graphene Layers: Scanning Probe Microscopy Reviels'and'Bottom-up fabrication of atomically precise graphene nanoribbons'of this book are available open access under a CC BY 4.0 license at link.springer.com

Nanotechnology is the result of the continuing technological trend toward device miniaturization and the characterization, manipulation, and fine control of structure and function at diminishing length scales. A large class of nanoscale materials can be stable even though they are far from the lowest-energy thermodynamic state, and many possess novel properties unattainable in bulk. These trends are supported by the increasing sophistication of characterization and fabrication tools such as the scanning tunneling microscope and the transmission electron microscope, which allow the resolution and manipulation of single atoms and molecules. Nanoscale Phenomena: Basic Science to Device Applications presents selected lectures from the Third Workshop of the Croucher Advanced Study Institute on Nano Science and Technology, and showcases contributions from world-renowned researchers. Chapters fall into four major categories: Nanostructured Carbon and its Applications, Quantum Dots and Molecular Spintronics, Nanomaterials Design and Synthesis, and Molecular Electronics.

It is about 15 years that the carbon nanotubes have been discovered by Sumio Iijima in a transmission electron microscope. Since that time, these long hollow cylindrical carbon molecules have revealed being remarkable nanostructures for several aspects. They are composed of just one element, Carbon, and are easily produced by several techniques. A nanotube can bend easily but still is very robust. The nanotubes can be manipulated and contacted to external electrodes. Their diameter is in the nanometer range, whereas their length may exceed several micrometers, if not several millimeters. In diameter, the nanotubes behave like molecules with quantized energy levels, while in length, they behave like a crystal with a continuous distribution of momenta. Depending on its exact atomic structure, a single-wall nanotube –that is to say a nanotube composed of just one rolled-up graphene sheet– may be either a metal or a semiconductor. The nanotubes can carry a large electric current, they are also good thermal conductors. It is not surprising, then, that many applications have been proposed for the nanotubes. At the time of writing, one of their most promising applications is their ability to emit electrons when subjected to an external electric field. Carbon nanotubes can do so in normal vacuum conditions with a reasonable voltage threshold, which make them suitable for cold-cathode devices.