FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Two recent national grants will help a rapidly growing Fayetteville company produce some of the world’s smallest working parts for sensors and biomedical labels, and possibly an improved way to screen for prostate cancer.

Nanomaterials and Nanofabrication Laboratories (NN-Labs), a GENESIS Technology Incubator company, has been awarded another Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to continue to refine the manufacture of liquid crystal displays (LEDs) based on nanocrystal precursors.

NN-Labs also recently won a grant from the National Institutes of Health to try to create a better prostate cancer screening test using nanocrystals in solution. Xiaogang Peng, University of Arkansas professor of chemistry and biochemistry, and his colleagues will combine nanocrystal technology with work on antibody fragments used in the screening process to eliminate a middle step. The new method would have the advantage of small size, easy preparation, low production costs and easy modification through genetic engineering.

"Our mission is to become a world leader in the development of commercial applications of colloidal nanocrystals for use in biological labeling, light emitting diodes, solar cells and lasers," said Peng, one of the founders of NN-Labs.

Nanocrystals vary greatly in their properties depending upon their size. The crystals have different optical properties, some of which can be used in solar cells and in light-emitting diodes used in computer displays. Nanocrystals also may be used as biomedical labels to detect disease.

NN-Labs is exploring the commercial development of colloidal nanocrystals, including manufacturing techniques, applications in bio-medical fields and electric devices based on nanocrystals.

Since mid-2002, NN-Labs has garnered almost $2 million in competitive SBIR grants, with about 20 percent going to the University of Arkansas to support related fundamental research.

Support from the federal agencies (NSF, Department of Defense, and National Institutes of Health), combined with assistance from the Arkansas Science and Technology Authority and the University of Arkansas, have contributed to the rapid growth of this nanotechnology company in Fayetteville. For more information about the company, please visit www.NN-Labs.com.