Nanotech in Russia: still a dream?

As light as a fabric, but more durable than metal…

The Unikhimtech factory near Moscow is producing “prepregs” – composite materials soaked in nano-particles that give them their unusual properties. The factory’s clients use them to construct next-generation airplanes

“This our chance to be competitive – to produce something the whole world wants,” said Unikhimtech general director Viktor Avdeev.

That is also exactly the thinking behind the Russian government's desire to pump more than one billion dollars a year into nanotechnologies.

The step is much-needed, as in Russia the industry still accounts for less than one percent of the economy.

”There is a gap between the theoretical findings and how much these can be used by the existing Russian industries,” said the Head of National Nanoindustry Association, Mikhail Ananyan.

Despite promising ready funding for those with ideas, the State Nanotechnology Corporation has yet to allocate all of its money.

Moreover, while billions of dollars seems impressive, other countries are still spending more.

“We were too late on the nanotechnology scene – governments were giving funding when we could not afford to,” said Ananyan. “We are not just behind the leaders, but those in the second tier. And the gap is getting bigger, not smaller.”

From lighter spaceships, to better medical treatment, to socks that don't smell, nanotechnology – the manipulation of tiny particles – promises to revolutionize lifestyles.

However, it seems unlikely to play a major role in Russia's economic recovery and growth in the next few years.