Trends in the field of nanocomposites will be covered, along with market data for projected products. Information on the latest developments incorporating nano-clays, carbon nanotubes and graphene into composites will be given.

Other topics will be those which use nano-based polymers for property enhancement, through flame retardancy, heat resistance, durability, antimicrobial activity, self-cleaning properties, conducting materials, and also those offering aesthetic effects.

Nanotechnologies have attracted a lot of attention, but concerns have been expressed about risks and environmental impact. Nanopolymers 2011 will feature talks on characterisation of nanocomposites, regulatory proposals and potential restraints, migration of the nano-component from polymers, recyclability, and the current patent landscape.

Specific applications for nanopolymers, including nano-biopolymers, will focus on their use in some key industry sectors such as transport, energy, and environmental applications.

Nanopolymers 2011 will offer participants the benefits of networking with experts, and learning about exciting developments in this fast moving field.

Prepared from thermo-, light-responsive, or pH-sensitive polymer systems, smart materials get their name by responding to small external stimuli with dramatic and predictable structural changes.

The commercial possibilities are literally endless. Whether it be yielding the next blockbuster cancer drug, tagging for food packaging or crime prevention, smart technologies are lucrative and ripe for the taking.

iSmithers’ second Smart Polymers conference aims to highlight the most recent advances and developments in this rapidly evolving field, and to provide attendees with a broad and comprehensive outlook on the emerging trends, perspectives, and limitations of the technological applications of various classes of stimuli-responsive polymer materials.

The conference aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the current state-of-the-art in the field and demonstrate, via a range of case studies and contributions from leading researchers, how companies might capitalise on this emerging technology.

iSmithers is currently recruiting speakers for this Smart Polymers conference so if this is your area of expertise please consider submitting a paper.

What topics are going to be presented at the conference?

Specifically, Smart Polymers will cover stimulus responsive polymers applied to layer-by-layer (LBL) thin films and capsules, tethered polymer layers, self-assembled amphiphilic molecules, membranes, nanogels, surface-modified nanoparticles, and hybrid systems – all areas in which significant progress has been achieved over the last 5 years. Recent findings involve new kinds of functionalities, materials responsive to stimuli such as light, electrical and magnetic fields, composites of synthetic and biomolecular materials, hierarchically-organized complex systems with multiple responses, and systems capable of processing multiple signals. This conference will be split into two distinct areas; general and biomedical. Papers are being particularly welcomed on:

• Sensing/ sensors
• Intelligent textiles
• Actuators
• Smart Coatings
• Wetting and Adhesion
• Hierarchically Structured Composites
• Stimuli-Responsive Colloidal systems
• Biomolecular patterning
• Drug delivery
• In vivo gene delivery
• Nanoparticles
• Biomembranes
• Tissue Engineering
• Stents
• Industry case studies and current academic research are welcomed for both days of the conference.

This international conference will take place during the IMAGINENANO event
that will also allow bridging the Graphene community with an enlarged scientific
community in Nanosciences and Nanotechnology, including industries (5 other
conferences or workshops will be held simultaneously).

GRAPHENE 2011 will be the first large scale opportunity for enlarging graphene
perspectives from the forefront upstream research to emergent application fields,
merging chemistry with physics and engineering !

• Devices/Applications/Reliability
• Micro/Nanofabrication
• NEW for 2011: Green Photonics Virtual Symposium

• Optoelectronic Materials and Devices
• Photonic Integration
• Nanotechnologies in Photonics
• Advanced Quantum and Optoelectronic Applications
• Semiconductor Lasers and LEDS
• Displays and Holography
• Optical Communications: Devices to Systems
• NEW for 2011: Green Photonics Virtual Symposium

• Laser Micro-/Nanoengineering
• Laser Applications
• Semiconductor Lasers and LEDs
• Nonlinear Optics
• Laser Source Engineering
• NEW for 2011: Green Photonics Virtual Symposium

To be considered for inclusion in the new Green Photonics virtual symposium,
submit your abstract to one of the regular conferences in LASE, MOEMS-MEMS,
or OPTO and identify your work with the key words "green photonics."
If your paper is selected by Green Photonics leadership, your work will be eligible
to receive special recognition at Photonics West.

• Virtual Track on Solid State Lighting and Displays
  Efficient new light sources will provide long-lived and economical
  illumination for human activities and information display.

• Virtual Track on Laser-assisted Manufacturing and Micro/Nano Fabrication
  
  Optoelectronic sensors and concentrated optical energy sources will
  enable precision fabrication with low waste.

• Virtual Track on Communications
  The next generation of optical networks will operate with increased
  bandwidth and reduced power consumption.

• Virtual Track on Renewable Energy Generation: Fusion and Photovoltaics
  
  Small carbon footprint technologies will help meet the world’s increasing
  demand for energy in a sustainable manner.

This AACR Special Conference will be a gathering of leaders and newcomers in
this field who will provide state-of-the-art information and will speculate
on future directions, with topics including the latest discoveries in nanoparticle
chemistry and formulation, delivery barriers, biomarkers, molecular imaging,
therapeutic applications, clinical translation, and safety, each as related
to cancer diagnostics and therapy. Sessions will include prominent, expert speakers
who are leaders in these areas. There will be a keynote address from Dr. Roger
Y. Tsien, who shared the 2008 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the discovery of
Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP) and seminal work to design and create fluorescent
molecules that enter cells and light up their inner workings. The program will
feature eight (8) interrelated plenary sessions, two (2) poster sessions, as
well as a proffered talk session for young investigators. This AACR conference,
the first of its type focusing on nanomedicine in cancer, will appeal to basic
scientists, translational and clinical investigators, and trainees. Please join
us in Miami for this exciting program.