The core capability of Nano Terra is the control of interface functionality. We create new function in materials through:

• The local application of chemistry
• The introduction of structures at surfaces
• The design of surface-engineered nanomaterials and their application to surfaces and bulk materials.

This approach is fundamentally different from the traditional method of developing function by creating wholly new materials. Our approach is faster, more efficient, and provides a broader range of function than traditional approaches. This gives our partners the ability to tailor their products in unique, differentiated, and proprietary ways, creating new value in the market.

Our capabilities allow our partners to address diverse needs in virtually every industrial sector: from creating membrane surface properties for desalination, to developing surface features for anti-reflective and anti-smudge glass for electronics, to engineering high-strength and low-abrasion materials for consumer and industrial applications, among many others.

Our methodology is based on molecular-level control of interfaces via chemistry, the precise control of structure at surfaces with nanometer resolution via a variety of deposition and patterning techniques, and the powerful combination of chemistry and structure.  This methodology enables new function for both existing and new materials, and provides four key advantages over traditional approaches in functionalized materials:

• Precision – We fabricate structures at higher resolution than traditional technologies;
• Versatility – We work with a broad and expanding collection of materials, including soft polymers and hard ceramics, metallic materials, and composites. We also create customized nanoparticles with well-defined structures, sizes, compositions;
• Reach – We address hard or “impossible” to reach places (e.g., inside of domes and on high curvature surfaces);
• Integration – We provide optimized solutions that combine chemistry and structure.

The results are unique solutions with five process advantages over traditional approaches:

• Cost – they require significantly less material and produce less waste;
• Energy – they use low amounts of energy;
• Scale – they are applicable to large areas;
• Speed – they are compatible with high throughput processing methods (e.g., roll-to-roll)
• Prototyping – they support rapid prototyping and facile transition to manufacturing.