NANOSCIENCE & NANOTECHNOLOGY

On December 29, 1959, in his classic lecture at the annual meeting of the American Physical Society at Caltech, Richard Feynman said “I would like to describe a field, in which little has been done, but in which an enormous amount can be done in principle….... furthermore, a point that is most important is that it would have an enormous number of technical applications..… there is plenty of room at the bottom”

He invited the audience to enter and venture this new field of physics. Within a couple of decades, the term nanotechnology was coined and remarkable advancement and novel discoveries in this new ‘world of nano’ followed.

Nanoscience & Nanotechnology deals with understanding and manipulating matter at dimensions of approximately 100 nm and below, with cross sectoral application and an interdisciplinary orientation. Within nanoscale, the physical, chemical and biological properties of materials differ from the properties of individual atoms and molecules or bulk matter enabling novel applications. Definition of nanotechnology is naturally very broad and includes various fields of science such as quantum mechanics, surface science, organic chemistry, molecular biology, semiconductor physics, nanofabrication, etc. The program on nanoscience and nanotechnology aims to provide a multidisciplinary natural science education towards students from various backgrounds like physics, chemistry, mathematics and biological sciences. This science of the miniscule encompasses a wide area of research ranging from energy and environmental applications to cancer treatment and targeted drug delivery.

Rapid scientific progress in nanoscience offers an increasingly prominent role in our everyday lives, so learning about phenomena at the nanoscale is becoming increasingly important. Globally acclaimed Universities and Institutions have already started post graduate program in Nanoscience and nanotechnology. However, in India, only a few educational institutions/ Universities offer this kind of advanced course. For more than a half century, University of Kalyani has contributed to the development of higher education keeping in view the importance of the outlying rural economy and the needs and aspirations of the youth in the region. Many of our students are first generation learners. Amid this backdrop, the university has established an academia of Nano education to sensitize our students and to encourage them to pursue collaborative research among various disciplines in this exciting multi-disciplinary cutting-edge area of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology. Moreover, introducing the M.Sc. program in Nanoscience & Nanotechnology is a first-of-its-kind initiative in East and Northeast India.

Very well skilled human resource is critical for the applications of this multidisciplinary field. Nanotechnology has enormous potential to influence the world from consumer goods, electronics, computers, information and biotechnology to aerospace, energy, environment, defense sector and medicine. In this regard, the program on Nanoscience and Nanotechnology will enhance the knowledge and skill of the students from a wide range of backgrounds; it will provide them with a better understanding of the role of nanomaterials in various fields of application mentioned above. The program consists of flexible and modular course structure and includes full-time M.Sc. course, to be delivered over two years. Advances in research would influence the curricula being taught in this course. The M.Sc. program will be structured on semester system (having 4 semesters), so that all modules become available at least once during the tenure. This program aims to enhance knowledge and skill development in this fast evolving discipline by providing a flexible, interdisciplinary course in nanoscience and nanotechnology at both the basic and applied level to different stakeholders (Research lab to Public domain).

Human Resource Development with wide, cutting-edge and in-depth knowledge in nanoscience and nanotechnology with the ability to translate in the benefit of the society.

Nanoscience and nanotechnology have huge potential to bring benefits to many areas of research and application, and are attracting rapidly increasing investments from government and from businesses in many parts of the world. This is an emerging field in science and technology and is poised to bring in revolutionary changes across all spheres of life, bringing in lot more job opportunities than one can imagine. With the advent of this discipline, there is a huge opportunity in the areas of pharmaceutical technology, healthcare, forensics, medical testing, agriculture, and environmental research. Moreover, there will be entrepreneurship opportunity in the related field of nanobiotechnology, biomedical research, diagnostics, agricultural science and others.

For Course Structure AND Detailed Syllabus, CLICK HERE.