22-09-2008, 09:32 AM
Mesotechnology describes a budding research field which could replace nanotechnology in the future as the primary means to control matter at length scales ranging from a cluster of atoms to microscopic elements. The prefix meso- comes from the Greek word mesos, meaning middle, hence the technology spans a range of length scales as opposed to nanotechnology which is concerned only with the smallest atomic scales.
describes very well phenomena on the atomic to nanoscale while classical Newtonian Mechanics describes the behavior of objects on the microscale and up. However, the length scale in the middle ( Although the term itself is still quite new, the general concept is not. Many fields of science have traditionally focused either on single discrete elements or large statistical collections where many theories have been successfully applied. In the field of physics for example, Quantum Mechanicsmesoscale) is not well described by either theory. Similarly, psychologists focus heavily on the behavior and mental processes of the individual while sociologists study the behavior of large societal groups, but what happens when only 3 people are interacting, this is the mesoscale.
