Mechadense's Wiki about Atomically Precise Manufacturing
Contents
Definition: What is APM?
Atomically precise manufacturing (APM) is a prospective method of production for material goods of all sizes.
The products of this manufacturing method consist out of atomically precise and often highly symmetric parts. These constituent parts like e.g. bearings and gears with high rotational symmetry have the smallest possible physical size that allows for their functioning. When assembled the systems they create strikingly resemble conventional factory-equipment that one finds in the meter scale. In contrast to atomic scale biological systems those artificial AP systems do not rely on thermic movement for their function, they operate in the machine phase. Out of various reasons diamond and diamond like substances are a good building material. More general the class of stiff and at room temperature non diffusing materials including mostly nommetallic or ceramic compounds with dense three dimensional covalent networks. All of the parts surfaces are chemically plugged (passivated) this (given incommensurate surface alignment) makes contacting surfaces superlubricating.
With extrapolatory engineering it was shown [ref] that AP products of the targeted type will perform better than most products out of materials known today and due to the characteristics of the manufacturing process theres also reason to assume that AP products will be cheap in production. Combined those two properties may lead to drastic changes in human civilisation over a short period of time.
The technical details about the targeted kind of technology can be found in the following Book:
Nanosystems: Molecular Machinery, Manufacturing, and Computation - by K. Eric Drexler
It contains details about math physics and chemistry behind those machines. Among other things it explains why quantum uncertainty is not really a problem, why thermal movement is a solvable challange and the difference to "natural chemistry".
Purpouse: What this site is for?
This is a place to gather information specifically relevant for the attainment of an APM technology level.
Please read the info on the community portal before contributing.
What we have today is a puzzle of technological fragments. There are fragments of todays technology as well as fragments of future technology. Those fragments of future technology are to a certain degree credible since they are quite well accessible for theoretical investigation. The objective is to find and locate all the ends of the fragments that are located at the beginning of the timeline and to find out what work needs to be done to tie them together with the beginning of the fragments later in the timeline.
Other closesy related topics are also welcome but are not the main objective of this site. [TODO add topic examples]
Note: When contributing here please avoid using the term Nanotechnology and use more precise and specific terms (APM related terms) instead.
History has led to the fact that it now (2013) almost exclusively links to non atomically precise technologies.
Motivation for this Site - why APM ?
The prospective products of AP technology are a chance to solve the global problems of human civilisation.
It is worrying that nontheless pulic interest is rapidly declining. Also in wide parts of the world APM is as good as unknow.
The reason for that development could be
- The rapid increase of non atomically precise nanotechnology was drawing all attention away.
- A lack of a place where the importance of AP Technology is explained far off motivational examples are given but at the same time
the grounded technical aspects are shown. This here could be that place.
One Proposed Pathway:
Going through three levels of technology: [add reference]
The recently developed self assemblig structural DNA nanotechnology [...] and similar reliably designable structures [...] might be a good starting point technology level 0.
- By introducing robotic (more precisely stereotactic) control one could reach something like a "block precise robotic technology" technology level I from there in a first step.
- In a second step one could change to Pyrite or Silica technology level II as building material to increase structural stiffness, reduce vibration amplitudes and get thus more placing accuracy.
- And finally in a third step one could switch from fluid phase to vakuum so that carbon and silicon can be assembled technology level III.
This very crude temporal outline is by no means the only possible way to go. There may be shortcuts or other paths.
Technical Stuff:
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