The U.S. military expects advances in nanotechnology to impact every major weapons system and is spending hundreds of millions of dollars annually on various research programs, according to a senior military science adviser.
The role of nanotechnology and nanoscale materials in military operations is still limited but the U.S. military is ramping up nanotech research and development efforts for the next war.
The Army is hunting for a new military uniform that can make soldiers nearly invisible, grant superhuman strength and provide instant medical care.
In this essay for the Center for Technology and National Security Policy at the U.S. military's National Defense University, the authors summarize the status and potential of the nanotechnology revolution and evaluate its likely impacts on national security and defense policy.
Defense Department researchers told lawmakers that nanotechnology promises immense gains, especially in computers, materials and propulsion, but its benefits are still decades away and likely to be difficult and costly to mass produce.
Calvin Shipbaugh, a physicist on the staff of the RAND Corporation, analyzes the impact the nanotechnology revolution will have on Army logistics and warns that "lack of vigilance by the Army in monitoring developments could create big problems in a short time."